Looking For A Job? Avoid These Common Mistakes
When you start your job hunt you are filled with enthusiasm and hope for a bright future. However, as the hunt progresses your optimism gets lower with every rejection you have to face. Ever wonder why you are not getting the job that you are perfect for and have all the relevant credentials?
The reason is simple: You are committing some basic job search mistakes without even being aware of the fact that you are doing something wrong. Even the most experience people, who have searched for jobs time and again and even found one, are committing these common mistakes which can eventually lead to failure on all accounts.
Make sure that you are not committing any of the job hunt mistakes mentioned below and if you are its time to stop.
Limited Research:
The most common mistake by all job hunters is that they look for jobs in selected few industries and that too from a single platform. You need to widen your circle and look into all industries which can possibly cater to your profession. There are so many job titles nowadays that there is no saying who can enter a company and who can’t. You need to keep an eye on all the job openings and apply to any job that is relevant to your education and experience. Applying to one or two jobs a month’s is not sufficient in the current job market.
Standardized Resume:
A large majority of the job seekers make this fatal mistake and have to learn sooner than later that standardized resumes don’t work. You cannot make one resume and apply to a dozen jobs by sending the same resume. It is important that you alter each resume and customize it according to the job specifications.
Employers don’t pass as much as a second glance at these resumes which are not specific to the jobs. Focus on the objective part of the resume and write related sentences which make your resume attractive for a specific job.
No Research on Potential Employers:
When the job seeker gets an interview call from a prospective employer, he prepares for all the questions that are asked by the employers but often neglect to research the history of the prospective employer. This is a big mistake as all employers will ask what you know about their company. Admitting ignorance in this regard, points towards a lack of effort and preparation at your end. You need not know everything about the employer but you can get the basic information by simply logging on to the company website and reading about their history and their profile. This little effort will help you tremendously during the interview.
Wasting Valuable Time:
When you are looking for a job you can often end up spending months in the pursuit of the perfect job. Meanwhile you end up wasting a lot of time which will be difficult to explain if the employers asks you about your activities when you were not employed. Make sure that you employ this time in improving your skills, studying additional courses or attending workshops so that you can show the employer that you value time and are proactive in life.
No Long Term Goals:
Not having a long term goal is a very important mistake as you will apply to random jobs and end up not getting a response from any of them. When you have a long term career related goal you can focus on the specific jobs that are good for your career and apply to those only.
Focused on salary alone:
When you are focused on salary only, you end up showing it to the employer. An employer wants to see willingness to work and passion rather than the need to get a high salary. So change your priorities now and see the difference it can make in your life.
November 3rd, 2010 at 4:37 pm
this is very true we often make these mistakes
November 3rd, 2010 at 6:44 pm
Very useful advice for the students, recent graduates or, for that matter anyone who is actively searching and applying for Jobs in a variety of companies.
Employers are scanning 100s of CVs for their own specific Keywords, prospective applicants should try to use the same Keywords that were advertised in the Job position. Their snap judgement will be to shortlist your CV.
Again, hats off to Rozee.pk team.
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Hajvery University (HU)
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November 4th, 2010 at 1:10 am
While the article is a great start, some ideas are out-dated.
The objective part of your resume is almost a non essential item now. Two reasons: First, when I look at your resume and give less than 15 seconds to decide whether I want to read your cover letter, I want easy to ready information on education and work experience. Are you qualified enough? And I know your objective. You are trying to find a job. In this economy you don’t need to tell the recruiter/hiring manager you are interested in the Analyst position you have applied to. The fact that you applied says it. Now, if you are floating your resume in search of opportunities that are not posted, that could be a time an objective would work.
Second, you have a cover letter to elaborate on your objective. Do NOT repeat your resume in your cover letter. This is a chance for you to be a real person and get the readers attention. What is different about you. For all those who say online application submitting takes the personality out of job application, here is where personality can come back in. Show yourself in your cover letter.
Oh, and do not put in the name and addresses in the cover letter when you apply online. Recruiters already get that information when they print out your profile. When submitting a paper application by mail, the name and address line helps. Online, just the name of the recruiter/hiring manager will do.
And keep applying, adjusting, and following up when possible!
November 4th, 2010 at 8:40 am
I think these core issues should be included in final semester courses. It’s hard to change your mind when you are already in market.
November 4th, 2010 at 9:26 am
Well, all of these rules are valid and are known to almost everyone. I suppose its luck which matters a lot..
November 4th, 2010 at 10:36 am
yes you are right these are the common Mistakes that we commit during our job hunting so avoid these things
November 4th, 2010 at 12:06 pm
Well, its a good article but I have a different opinion regarding standardized resume. I dont know any of my friends who has not customized his/her resume for any specific job as this is something which was told to us by our teachers and its otherwise a matter of common sense.
Another aspect of Job hunting, I would like to add, is timely response by a candidate. CV must be forwarded asp. Better is to do it on the same day when the job is advertised.
November 5th, 2010 at 11:16 am
First of all I would like to mention here that this is the most effective and potentional effort of Rozee.pk to provide the tips to get the proper job in job market. One of the common mistake is that we often ignore the profile of the company and rush for interview.
November 5th, 2010 at 11:49 am
Thanks for the advice. These are valuble points for job hunting.
November 6th, 2010 at 6:25 am
In addition, Mr. Ammar’s Ist para clicks. Normally one would straight away go to the qualifications and experience and decide whether to call you or not. But this is good where there are a number of jobs. Multinationals would however go through some details if not all.
A M Malik
November 7th, 2010 at 6:11 pm
Nice Article. Really got to know many informative and supportive tips for my career. Thanks for such a good piece of work.
November 10th, 2010 at 12:29 am
Thanks to ROZEE.PK for these valuable tips on job hunting and also to the users who added more points to the article. We have committed these common mistakes every time when we apply for a job. I think these things should be taught to us in universities and colleges such as how to appear in an interview, in entry tests, best method of presenting yourself etc.
November 10th, 2010 at 11:59 pm
These are nice & effective tips. However, the element of LUCK cannot be ruled out here.
November 21st, 2010 at 2:09 pm
One good way to make your resume more specific to the job is to incorporate keywords found in the job description. Use those keywords in your resume. This will create a more targeted resume and increase your chance of getting a call for interview.
November 30th, 2010 at 3:10 pm
good hay
December 9th, 2010 at 9:42 am
Always very good suggestions by Rozee team!
December 28th, 2010 at 11:27 am
Very nice, keep up the good work ROZEE team!! how i can send my suggestions in this regard.
August 5th, 2011 at 8:43 pm
Very helpful for checking our mistakes.
November 2nd, 2011 at 11:10 pm
You have mentioned some useful tips for a successful career, thanks…