Reader’s Choice – Job Search Resources

“Ch-ch-Changes
Just gonna have to be a different man
Time may change me
But I can’t trace time” – David Bowie

Every so often I cover suggestions/recommendations from CareerAlley readers. The following are resources &/or articles recommended via email. Enjoy and please keep the recommendations coming. Continue Reading

My Favorite Job Search and Career Sites – Vol 1

“When the dog bites
When the bee stings
When I’m feeling sad
I simply remember my favorite things
And then I don’t feel so bad” –  Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II

I’ve seen hundreds of career and job search sites over the three years that I’ve been writing for CareerAlley. While I’ve not kept a real “list”, I do have my favorite sites. The list (partially listed in this post) is not in any particular order, it’s just the sites that I feel provide the best resources and information. I’ve covered Job Search Sites, Career Advice sites and Career Resource sites. Most of these I’ve stumbled upon during my research on a topic for a post and then have continued to visit the site (or recommend them to job searchers). Again, the list is not exhaustive and I will cover a number of sites over a series of posts. If I’ve left off your favorite site, please drop me an email (careersblog@gmail.com). Continue Reading

Top Picks for Job Search – Companies on “The List”

“Anything worth doing, is worth doing right.” – Hunter S. Thompson

So when you look for job opportunities, do you just do a search based on job openings or do you have a “list”? If you are now thinking “what list?” then this post is for you. So, just like today’s quote, getting the right job is worth doing right. Part of your plan for job search should include making a list of companies where you would like to work. Not to say that you should only consider the companies on your preferred company list, but the list should form a large part of your foundation for job search. Of course, lots of work goes into coming up with your preferred list. Today’s post is a first in series of “Top Pick” lists and will help with some of your research. Continue Reading

Hired Help – Job Search Made Easy

“As technology advances, it reverses the characteristics of every situation again and again. The age of automation is going to be the age of “do it yourself”.” – Marshall McLuhan

I traveled down to Wall Street in NYC from my midtown location the other day having not been down there in a few years. I was on my way to meet someone and was taking a stroll on John Street heading towards William Street. Taking in the sites on John Street, I thought back to the beginning of my career (some time before personal computers) and I remembered how John Street had been lined with lots of recruiting firms. In those days, job hunting meant that you would go from recruiter to recruiter, sit in their reception area, fill out an application and then sit through an interview with the recruiter. And, if you were interested in working for a specific company, you would have to go to that company’s HR department, fill out an application and then leave a resume (which would have been “offset printed” on nice paper).  Have I mentioned mailing (as in “snail mail”)? This meant typing your resume, having it printed (as in at a printing shop), typing mailing labels (as in on a typewriter).

Job search has come a long way since I started working and, while the Internet has made job search so much easier, the shear volume of information and choices can be overwhelming. Everything is at our fingertips, yet job search can and does take a lot of time and effort. So, what if there were tools you could use to “ease the pain”? Better yet, what if these tools were free and would save you countless hours of research? Like everything else in life, there always a better way. Today’s post will focus on tools to streamline your job search. Continue Reading

The Long Road Back – 5 Links for Starting Your Job Search

“It’s not about where you started, it’s about the journey” – Joey Trebif

Losing your job sucks. There’s just no other way to put it. Whether you are part of a downsizing, merger, “job mismatch” or plain old “going out of business”, there is no worse place to be than on the unemployment line. I’ve seen all of the variations of job loss from all different angles. And whether you are an observer or a participant, it is one of the more unpleasant facts of life. After it happens, it no longer matters how it happened, the end result is the same. How you react to your job loss will very much impact how quickly you will bounce back. Regardless, you will need and should allow for your “mourning” period. And then it’s time to look forward and not back. Become fully engrossed in your job hunt. Today’s post is about the long road back to a new job and a new beginning. Whatever your journey, you will end up in a better place than you where when you started. Continue Reading

5 Steps to Making a Fresh Start for Job Search

“The price of success is hard work, dedication to the job at hand, and the determination that whether we win or lose, we have applied the best of ourselves to the task at hand.” – Vince Lombardi

New Year, new start (right?)! Any resolutions? How many will you keep and how many will you break? If you are like most people, you will probably break some. If finding a new job was one of your resolutions, now is the time to get organized and set your plan in motion. One of the keys to success is to set goals that are realistic and tasks that can be reasonably accomplished.

How you approach your job search is driven by many factors: Continue Reading

Reinvent Your Career and Job Search – Part 2

“A great wind is blowing and that gives you either imagination or a headache” – Catherine the Great

In Part 1 of this article, we covered reinventing your career (Reinvent Your Career and Job Search – Part 1). Today’s post focuses on reinventing your job search. Similar reinventing your career, there countless reasons why you would (and should) reinvent your job search. Maybe you’ve been our of the job search market for a few years (or longer) and need to adjust to the ever changing online job search process. Or maybe your current job search is not yielding results. Possibly you don’t need to totally reinvent your search, maybe just tweak it. Whatever the reason, today’s post will provide some advice and links to the “how” part. Research – Where do you want to work? – First thing you should do is decide where you want to work (as in the company). You should make a list of the companies where you would love to work. This is, of course, the end result of lots of research. While you probably have an idea of your short list, you will (and should) need to do additional research to build out your list. There are tons of resources for your research. Following are a few links. Continue Reading

Reinvent Your Career and Job Search – Part 1

“Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life.” – Confucius

I ran into an old friend (metaphorically speaking) that I used to work with very early in my career. We hadn’t been in contact for probably 12 years or so even though we spent 11 years (across two companies) working together way back when. When we worked together, he was not your average guy. He was a very successful business man, near the top of his field. A typical “type A” personality, but if he liked you he would go out of his way to help you. Anyway, long story short, I spotted him on LinkedIn and he then sent a message letting me know the new things he was doing (very different from what he was doing when we worked together). I pressed him a bit for more information on one of his new ventures (because it seemed so different from what I would expect) and he told me that every so often you need to reinvent yourself. And you know what? He’s right. Sometimes we are forced to reinvent ourselves (industries change, companies disappear, skill sets become irrelevant due to changes in technology, etc.) and sometimes change is just part of our natural progression. So, whether you’re reinventing yourself because of your own personal “evolution” or are changing due to a forced “revolution”, take some time to map out the best way to get to your destination. Reinvent Your Career:Before you reinvent anything, the first question you should ask is “why?”. There are millions of reasons why, but in the interest of time, I’ve tried to narrow it down to some of the most common reasons. The second question you should ask is “how?” and there are a few links below to cover that as well. Continue Reading

Who’s Hiring in Finance Vol 2- Targeted Job Search

“When the truth is found to be lies” – “Somebody to Love”, performed by Jefferson Airplane (written by Darby Slick)

Very tough times at work lately.So, in order to put some hope in my day, I went off and purchased a lottery ticket. I’m not sure about you, but for me buying a lottery ticket provides some glimmer of possibly better times to come. From the moment of purchase until the lottery numbers are drawn I think about all of the ways I will spend the money and how much better (I think) my life will be. That, of course, all comes to an end when the numbers are drawn and at best I win $2 or generally nothing at all. Been there yourself? But, I am a realist and I know that the only way I might better my lot in life (or at least my job) is to be proactive in finding a better job (but one can always dream about winning the lottery). Continue Reading

Getting the Right Job or Doing the Job Right?

“If You’re Not the Lead Dog, the Scenery Never Changes” – Lewis Grizzard

When I was in college I worked as a “runner” on Wall Street during the summer (yes, it was a very long time ago and no, I’m not referring to drugs). A fairly simple job of taking securities and other important documents from one financial institution to another (basically, a messenger). At the time I was 19 years old and this was my first non-fast food job. So the first day I get there and all of the “regulars” (you know, the guys who actually do this as their real job) are sitting around waiting for their first “assignment”. They were a lot older than I was at the time (in their 40′s). Anyway, I get my first assignment – to deliver a package to a financial institution that was about 10 minutes away. As I walk out of the door, one of the regulars pulls me aside and says “this delivery will take you about 15 minutes, but you need to make it last an hour, don’t come back before an hour has passed. Get it?” So I did as he said and took an hour (thinking I would get fired for being so slow), but the “manager” did not think it was unusual that it took me an hour. So long story short, these guys were just milking their messenger job for what it was worth trying to do the least work possible and succeeding (if you could really call that success). Clearly not the recipe for “starting in the mailroom and rising to become the CEO”.

There is a delicate balance in getting the right job and doing the job right. First step in looking for a new job is, obviously, getting the right job for you. But, like everything else in life, nothing is perfect and even the right job will have its warts. Today’s post will focus on getting the right job and making the most of the job you’ve got. Continue Reading