The long holiday season is the time to put aside thoughts of a career transition or getting into a new job, right? It can wait until the new year, right?
Wrong! This is an ideal time to dive into career marketing efforts because so few others will be doing it!
Find just about all there is to know in David Perry’s new e-book, “The 12 Days of Christmas Job-Hunting”, which you can download at his Guerilla Job Hunting blog.
Here’s a brief run down of his advice:
Day 1 — Make “a plan with a very clear goal”, that is also:
- Clever,
- Results driven,
- Marketing oriented,
- Inexpensive to execute,
- Realistic, and
- Achievable.
Day 2 — Crack the hidden job market with 2 strategies:
- Targeted Research
- Find the People Who Can Hire You (circumvent the gatekeepers).
Day 3 — The 3 R’s of job-hunting. In grade school some of us learned the 3 R’s of Reading, wRiting and aRithmetic. The 3 R’s of job-hunting are:
- Research
- Relevancy
- Resiliency
Day 4 — Four Guerrilla style resumes. Remember that your resume is a career marketing document.
1. Chronological
2. Functional
3. Value Based
4. A special 1-page eXtreme Makeover resume. The 3 above may suffice, but nothing has the impact of a sparkling one-pager, when done correctly.
Day 5 — The 5 Golden Rules:
1. It’s not about you, it’s about them.
2. “No” just means “not today”.
3. You are the brand.
4. Sex sells.
5. You need to become a Guerrilla Job-Hunter.
Day 6 — 6 Online Tools to download.
Day 7 — 7 Social Networks you need to consider joining.
Day 8 — 8 Resume Rules.
1. Give ’em what they want.
2. Be relevant.
3. Target your reader.
4. Keep it crisp.
5. Use bullets.
6. Highlight your strengths.
7. Demonstrate results.
8. Give it “POP”.
Day 9 — 9 Tools for Researching Leads.
Day 10 — 10 Super Motivators: the best of the best for tuning up your attitude.
Day 11 — 11 other ways to find a job today.
1. Send ½ your resume
2. Write a prospecting letter
3. Send a letter stating you’re over qualified.
4. Do a Competitive Analysis
5. Call Human Resources
6. Send Your Press Kit
7. HOLD A CONTEST OR LOTTERY AND SELL TICKETS
8. Get a job-search buddy
9. Use personal letterhead and envelopes
10. Recruit your Tribe
11. Become “The Expert”
Day 12 — 12 Bloggers Blogging. A list of not-to-be-missed careers industry experts.
Happy, happy holidays! Wishing 2009 is your best year ever!
