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Career Advice for Job Seekers

How to find a job during COVID-19

Photo courtesy of Shutterstock.
Photo courtesy of Shutterstock.
Steven Rothberg AvatarSteven Rothberg
October 26, 2020


Let’s not pretend that the job market is great or that it is easy to find a job. This is a tough job market and it is not easy to find a job. That said, tough does not mean impossible and there are employers hiring for almost every role. Getting a new job during COVID-19 is more difficult, but not impossible.

Here are six tips for how to find a job during this pandemic:

  1. If you’re already employed, consider staying with your current employer long than you’d ideally like as that will relieve some pressure on your job search and probably allow you to find a better job. If you’re already employed, it is likely better to find a better job a little slower than a worse job a little faster.
  2. Practice networking with friends and family, especially on-line. Oh, and speaking of networking, remember that networking is all about asking how you can help others instead of asking them to help you. When you help others, they naturally want to reciprocate. When they ask how they can repay the favor, ask them to connect you with two other people who might have career-related ideas for you. Quickly, someone is going to tell you they won’t connect you because they have a role for you. But learn how to use social networking sites to engage with employers. Learn how to interview well over Zoom or other video conferencing systems. And learn how to ace your telephone interview.
  3. Follow-up with potential employers. Far too many candidates apply to jobs and never follow-up. Give the employer a few business days to get back to you and then follow-up by email or phone. All you want to know is if they received your resume and the timing of the next step. Maybe they tell you that a recruiter should review it within a week. If so, call or email them back in eight days. Always be polite. Always phrase your requests so that it is clear that you’re trying to help them. Don’t beg. Don’t stalk. But be diligent and persistent. Your presence and follow-through will impress most employers and confirm for them throughout their entire hiring process that you remain interested.
  4. Research your prospective employer and work those details into your communications with them. Did they just land a big, new account? Were they awarded a patent? Did their Chief Revenue Officer retire? Use Google Alerts to set up automated notifications to you when they’re in the news.
  5. Follow your competences, interests, and values. Grab a legal pad and make three columns: one for what you’re good at, a second for what you like to do, and a third for what is important to you. Look for commonalities. Those should guide your job search.
  6. Enhance your skills. For some, that means furthering their formal education. For others, that might mean practicing skills. For others, it might mean volunteering. But if you’re laid off or have some excess free time right now, put it to use. You can be sure that a future, prospective employer is going to want to know what you did when you had extra time.

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