Sorry to say, folks, we can’t be the job search silver bullet.
Sure, we solve a lot of problems and frustration in the job search, but we aren’t going to find you your dream job. Or even a step job to get to the dream job. We provide solutions to problems, but we aren’t getting you the job.
Here’s a note we got from someone who deleted their account recently:
“I’ve yet to find a job through you. I’d do better sitting in front of the White House with a tin cup.”
Yeah, you know what, you probably are better off doing that… especially if you login to JibberJobber every day hoping to see a job offer pop up on your screen.
Seriously – what problems do we solve? Here are the two biggies:
Organizing your job search. I used a spreadsheet to organize my job search, and I quickly outgrew it. That means it was getting very, very messy. Columns added here, data added there… it became a hodgepodge of junk that I was spending time trying to decipher. Sound silly? Spend a few weeks in an intense job search, networking, and applying to jobs, and your spreadsheet will get confusing – quick!
Managing a job search. Another user said that JibberJobber became his virtual assistant – allowing him to focus on the important stuff while JibberJobber simply kept his stuff in the right place and reminded him of important things he needed to do (like network).
Now, many people use JibberJobber to manage their own network (like a personal relationship manager), or to manage business stuff (like a customer relationship manager)… so it’s definitely not limited to being a job search tool… it’s all about the relationships.
Back to this person’s note to us, though… if you want to switch on the computer and have a tool that delivers jobs to you, good luck. There will be hundreds of thousands of others who are sitting there waiting for the same job delivered to them. And then the race is on, to be the person who stands out in a sea of resumes.
There are no silver bullets. Stop looking for them. Same applies to guaranteed tricks, shortcuts, and the like.
JibberJobber will not perform your job search for you.
Also, Santa Claus isn’t real.
🙂
sniff sniff… no… santa…. cla…… waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!
Robert wrote it before I could. Rarely can you ever point to a single thing that gets you The Job. You know, something you did or had or used that was the only factor in getting you employed. That’s not going to happen. When I undertook job searches, every time, I had to do many things and do them better. For any given job search, you probably need to:
– Improve your resume
– Get up to date on the market
– Improve some professional skills
– Check with your network
– Upgrade your wardrobe
– Brush up on your interview technique
– Do a whole lot of footwork, research, comparisons, information tracking
– Get some means of covering your basic expenses
– Care for your emotional and mental health and your family’s
So you have many different tasks that require different tools. Pointing to any single one of them and expecting it is The Tool that will get you a job is downright stupid. JibberJobber won’t get you job, nor will your resume, nor LinkedIn, nor the one meet-and-greet you just attended. Your entire toolbox and a lot of work on your part (and some luck) are what will get you the job.
I’m tired of people expecting silver bullets because of two reasons
1) They expect them, which is niave.
2) They get lazy, expecting they’ll find one, which is, well lazy.
I think we’re wrong to call it a “Job Search.” We should call it a “Search Job” because finding a new job IS a job. It’s work.
Right on! A key to success in your job search is managing , organizing, and focusing your effort much like you would do for a project at work.
Ernie, that’s actually a point Orville Pearson makes in his “The Unwritten rules of the highly effective job search” It really is a project like anything else – with timelines, goals, etc.
I’m biased of course – I’m a Project Manager.
Steven, that’s probably a good suggestion for modeling one’s job search: use a form you’re familiar with.
If you’re a Project Manager, use project tools, Gantt charts, etc.
If you’re a Sales Manager, establish a lead tracking system, metrics for # of calls made daily, etc.
If you’re in Marketing, plan it as you would a campaign for a client or product.
And if you feel you’re on familiar ground by doing this, you might avoid the creeping anxiety that brings so many to a standstill in their searches.
Robert