Consistency, focus, and change

Being an unemployed college graduate, I am in constant search of advice on how to land a job. From interview tips to resume ideas to what to wear, everything is a crucial part of the process. There are many things out there that can help, but one thing that I have come to read on a regular has been the New Grad Blog, which gives tips that range from interviewing to networking. It has been a great help so far, and has lead to a better sounding resume. It's most recent post "3 Golden Keys to Job Hunting for New Grads" has reinforced what I have been doing.

I get up, grab a snack to start my metabolism, and off I go. I have a list of sites that I tend to go to and search for jobs. These sites are:
Media Bistro, Indeed, iHispano, One day One Job, idealist, Craigslist, Tweet my Jobs

On top of all those sites, I use my twitter account. For those of you familiar with twitter, there are third party programs which allow you to better organize what is going on on your feeds. I use tweetdeck, which allows for search columns to be laid next to each other. My columns are All Friends because you never know who is going to say something that will lead you to success. My next one is my marketing column, this one allows me to hear what people are talking about in relation to marketing. This may include trends, techniques, new things going on, etc. Most job posts on twitter will have a location name to allow for anyone listening to know where the job is. That's why I have a couple other columns designed to locations. I have New York, NY - Chicago, IL - Greenwich, CT - Stamford, CT.

I'm still trying to work on the networking part of it, but I have confidence I will make some connections. Anyone reading this that would like to connect, let me know. Here is my LinkedIn.

The second part of it was finding something that you want to do. It talks about being picky so you go where you want to go, but with the small job market there currently is. This although very smart for you to enjoy your job, is something that I can't accept. There are already a limited number of jobs out there, so being picky isn't really an option, for me at least. I tend to apply to jobs that would allow me to learn, grow as well as challenge me because if I am not challenged, I don't feel I am doing my best work. With that being said, the second part also talks about tailoring resumes, something I've been doing for a while. After tailoring the resume, I tailor the cover letter to the resume/job posting. I address what I have done in a manor that allows the person reading to see why I would be a great fit for the position. I don't lie, I don't stretch the truth, I just explain what I have done and the results it has had.

The last part is the change part, which pretty much explains that you need to see what your doing and relate it to the results. The only problem with that right now is that the time it takes for the companies to get back to you is at least a month at best. So I play the waiting game.

If you are in the same situation as me I would recommend staying tuned to the blog. It does provide insightful posts. It has definitely helped me along the way so if you're in my situation, take some of the tips I gave you and see if anything works for you.