Great Occupations

When the only tool you have is a hammer, everything looks like nails

When it is time to look for a job, most candidates have one hammer - the mega-job boards.

Major job boards are the best thing that’s ever happened to job search…..
There was a time in this country that looking for a job meant “pounding the pavement”. You dressed nice, and went door-to-door with resume in hand. Then, the newspaper simplified that process. For those companies who could afford it, they could reach a broader talent pool by putting their jobs in the newspaper. Do you remember spending time with the Sunday newspaper’s employment section where you would circle good-fitting jobs? If you are from a major metropolitan area, this may have taken a considerable amount of time. Have you seen the employment section lately? It is a fraction of the size it was 5, 10, or 20 years ago. Why? The newspaper has been replaced by online websites. In a way, it is the best thing that has happened to the job search. You don’t have to dress up and “pound the pavement” anymore! You can do everything from the comfort of your own home.

…and the WORST thing that’s happened to job search….
Now instead of competing with a handful of qualified candidates, you could be competing with hundreds of qualified and hundreds of unqualified candidates! Anyone who can hit a submit button can apply for that job. Many don’t care if their experience even matches in the slightest. To them it is a numbers game. That’s why internet job searching has about a 10% success rate.

Everyone is using a hammer….
When the application process takes no more than a click of a button, there’s no doubt why success rates have dropped. This last week we finished the AIM Module of The Job Search Boot Camp. In this module we took some time to talk about the effectiveness of job search methods. Online Job Boards have about a 10% effectiveness rating. In the AIM module, we showed the participants a method which is 86% effective! That module (along with other great modules) is available for purchase and download from our website - http://www.GreatOccupations.com.

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Jay Markunas is the co-hosts of The Job Search Boot Camp Show which is available on iTunes. He & partner, Angela Loëb are the co-creators of The Job Search Boot Camp webcast – 3 evenings to career success. Visit their website for more information at http://www.JobSearchBootCamp.net.

Tags: careerbuilder, Hammer, hotjobs, interview, job search, Lencioni, mega-job board, monster, nails, purpose, Resume, retirement, Senior Work Solutions, The Three Signs of a Miserable Job