Three Steps to Building a Successful Job Search Plan

Three Steps to Building a Successful Job Search Plan Three Steps to Building a Successful Job Search Plan Looking for a job isn’t what it used to be. Today’s job search is an activity that requires organization, planning and scheduling.  In fact, one of the most important building blocks of  any  job search is  effective planning. The  challenge  is that while serious job searchers are committed to the job search,  they  often have trouble with the job  search  schedule and can’t get  organized or  find the  time.       In order to execute a job search plan  successfully, it is vital to commit  to three actions:     Block out a certain amount of time   Complete a set of activities in the right order     Track  your  progress every  day       Block Out Time     This  does  not  mean that you  have to  schedule time each and every day for job searching; do what is feasible in your life  and current workload. However, it is important to commit to, and stick with,  how much time you will spend on your job search.  The more effort and time  you  can  spend on job search will likely result in better outcomes  faster!     Carve out specific blocks of time  for job search activities  and put  them  on  your  calendar.  Whatever the commitment is,  make appointments with yourself in your  calendar.  Whether you use online schedulers or a paper calendar,  be sure you  stick to your schedule.       Complete a Set of Activities     Specific  activities are the heart of your job search. They include  things like  researching  potential companies and submitting applications, and they have  to be repeated  over and over  until you land  that new job.  The specific activities and their order include:     Preparing to Job Search â€" This includes organizing your technology, job search tools, communication  methods,  and documents.     Researching â€" You should be reading up  on  industry news, conducing internet or library searches, researching potential companies, and preparing for interviews.     Networking â€" Find out if there are industry events or external meetings to attend, or groups you can join.  Spend time on LinkedIn connecting with old colleagues or new ones.     Applying or Cold Calling â€" Build and refine your  network  list, contact your network list via phone or e-mail,  or  send out ‘candidate packets.’     Following Up â€" Be sure to follow up by sending  thank you notes (via e-mail) or contact hiring managers. You  actually  need to follow up three times after making the initial contact.     Rehearsing â€" Build and refine interview questions, draft scripts for phone calls, write draft e-mails before sending.  Practice interviews by role playing.     For the best results,  specify which  activity  you will do in a given hour  and stay in that  activity.  When you schedule an hour or twohour block dont just say  â€˜job search.’  Pick a particular activity  to  focus  on and write it down. For example,  you might say, ‘build my professional network list’  or  â€˜update my LinkedIn profile.’  Then that’s what you do for that blocked off amount of time.     Track  Your  Progress     Regular tracking  of job search activities reinforces  that job search is  your  number one priority. It prevents  wasting  time and ensures effectiveness and efficiency. It will also help to accelerate  the speed  in  which you get  to the finish line, which is  landing  your  new job.     Be comfortable with the type of calendar technology you use. Whatever you normally use for calendaring, use that for job search. Document every activity you do and what you need to do to follow up.  For example, if you go to an evening network event where youve collecting business cards,  you need to follow up with  these contacts the next morning and that  activity goes on  the  calendar.  The calendar serves as a record of all the things you have done and all the things yet to do.     In summary, finding a new job should  be treated like a job, which means committing to a schedule and completing the activities that make up a successful job search. By getting into a routine to conduct the  job search steps  of  preparation, research, networking,  and  completing applications,  you can avoid falling  back in that old job search pattern of random tasks and frustration.   Join Dana Manciagli’s  Job Search Master Class ®  now  and get the most comprehensive  online  job search system available!