Why is your job hunt not materializing?

They are lucky people who get a job on their maiden application or after their very first interview. Most people experience unsuccessful job search; and the reason for it is that one of their many job search skills may be feeble. You need to know precisely which skill is that.

             If you scrutinize all your job search skills, you can make them robust and strong. Basically, they comprise three crucial connections and if you ponder over each one of them judiciously, a strong composite whole will follow. These so-called links are:

Resume: Your resume also includes the covering letter. If it fails to elicit notice and consideration and you do not get any call letter, it is perhaps what needs your attention. The resume and call letter should induce the person at the other end to rate you high and impel your recruitment. Any resume, if it has to be good, should facilitate the following:

·   Market your transferable expertise.

·   Render support to skills that have bottom-line effects and attainments.

·   Easy comprehension of assertions and facts put across.

·   Preclude the possibility of branding you fit for the job and career that you are presently in.

·   Concentrate on a singly career aim.

Distribution: You can be the most qualified person for a job and have the best of a resume, but even then you may not get a call letter. Your resume should circulate around as many people as possible; to that extent the outcome of your resume is contingent on this and is therefore, all a game of figures. If, ab initio, your resume is effectual, there is likelihood that all resumes that you dispatch will fetch you call letters; and you will sail through all interviews. The question is how many people should view your resume? Well, you can increase their numbers manifold by:

·   Subscribing to agencies that target your particular stream or profession. 

·   Posting your resume on several job portals like naukri.com, monsterindia.com and timesjobs.com for wider circulation and receipt of information on job openings.

·   Being upbeat and aim to storm all potential employers with your resume.

·   Making use of your contact base to circulate your resume; the contact base should always be in an expanding mode.

Interview: Your resume could be excellent and you get letters for interviews. But if you do not get selected, it is evident that your interview skills are poor. If you have to probe into them, you should query yourself on:

·   Whether you have adequate knowledge about the company that is interviewing you.  

·   The state of your preparation for the interview and if you are acquainted with the questions that the interviewer generally asks.

·   Aspects that you will need to seek clarifications about so that you are clear about various issues related to job per se.

·   Your capability to bare any possible trepidation that may preclude your getting the job.

·   Your ability to close an interview on a favourable and friendly note?

Consideration of the above details will help you discern your inadequacies and limitations. Having done so, you may take appropriate action to do away with them and emerge well-set and confident for the next opportunity coming your way. Some recommended actions are:

·   If it is your resume that is pulling you down, you may consider getting it drafted by a professional so that all relevant facts are included in it

·   If your resume is not getting a wide circulation, then perhaps you may get in touch with a career coach who can show the way for a more effective job search and help you to put together a drive to increase your resume exposure.

·   If you infer that your ability to face an interview is lacking, there will not be any dearth of call letters. But if you join an interview coaching centre, you will be able to improve upon them. 

Remember that your job hunt is like a chain; and a chain is no stronger than its weakest link. If you reinforce strengthen each one of them, your efforts will not go waste. If you identify your problems but give your power and energy to solutions, the wait for a job will indeed be very short.