Don't follow the crowd!Job Seekers Make
The most common mistake we see job seekers make is to underestimate the amount of time and effort it may take to find a good job. Finding a job is a job in itself and should be approached with the same effort and attention to detail as any job. Here are some things that job seekers do to shoot themselves in the foot.
1. Some job seekers seem to spend little time and effort on figuring out what kind of job and what kind of employer they want. They seem to let the job market or other people decide what they should do in life. Be pro-active, decide what you want to do, figure out what you need to do to get there, and then put some effort into making it happen.
2. Some job seekers make just one attempt to contact an employer and when they don’t hear back, they assume the employer is not interested. Communication is not perfect. Keep working at it. Try more than once to make contact. Use two different methods of communication (email, telephone, fax, postal mail) But, don’t “bug” the employer. If you have tried three times and get no response, put the job “on the back burner” and move on.
3. Some job seekers don’t seem to think that good communication skills matter. Their letters, messages, and resume are full of typos, misspelling, bad grammar, and sloppy thinking. Proofread everything! Show important letters and resumes to people you trust. Ask for help making your communication better. People will judge your abilities based on your ability to communicate. If you are a sloppy communicator, employers will tend to think you are a sloppy worker too. Then again, maybe you are!
Don’t just advertise with Equimax/HorseJobs and then hope the right thing comes along. Work at it. Treat your job search just like a job. Work at it every day, but don’t forget to take a day off.
