Get on the right side of politics.
Politics is involved in almost every aspect of life, including how we spend our money, relationships, amateur athletics, and corporate America. Why not get on the right side of it? As much as a morally correct society we live in, we cannot deny that we all have preferences. If you owned a company, would you be more prone to hire members of your fraternity or sorority, people from your city, or former classmates? Those may not be your mutual connectors or tipping points, but we all have some. Research job recruiters or decision-makers at companies and decipher what mutually connects you with the person who has the ability to hire you. You all could have the same birthday, favorite sports teams, or mutual hobbies and interests. Using that icebreaker could be the route to your next paycheck.
Include a cover letter.
I almost dropped my phone when I read a tweet that said a cover letter is almost like begging. Don't confuse pride and principles. A cover letter should be looked at as going the extra mile instead of compromising your beliefs. If you don’t believe in going the extra mile, chances are a company won't believe in compensating you like other employees willing to go the extra mile.
Articulate your value.
I accomplished A, B, and C. That’s great, but how did you do it? This is a unique aspect of Williams Commerce. Showing, not telling, is a storyteller's skill set. Not many storytellers write resumes outside of Williams Commerce. Articulating how you increased sales by 60% during one fiscal year instead of just stating that you increased sales by 60% will significantly increase the value of your resume.
Do your homework.
Have a strategy to get in the door and what to do once you’re in the door. You can easily distinguish yourself from other candidates by showing how prepared you are doing the interview process. This could be done by a quick google search and regurgitating some of the information you learned online or by asking the right questions.
Are you fishing in the right pond?
Job searching without a strategy is like driving to an unknown destination with no GPS. You might get there, but lack of planning and wasted energy will cost you life's most precious gift, time. Applying everywhere might save you time on the front end, but it'll catch up to you on the backend. Have you ever been halfway into an interview and couldn’t wait for it to end and never look back? This strategy will minimize those occasions.
Communicate with the employed.
This is a method that can be applied to any discipline. Communicating with others who are where you want to be is one of the quickest ways to get to where you want. How your friend found their job might spark a method to land you employment.
Get recommendations on LinkedIn.
Optimizing your LinkedIn profile should be a top priority for any professional. A step that many overlook during the optimization process is the recommendation section. Aside from recruiters wanting to know if you have the skills to excel at the job opening you are applying for, they want to know if you would be a good fit for morale and company culture. Having people that could vouch for your work ethic, character, or skills in the recommendations section will help assure recruiters of that.