Being unemployed is quite common. Sometime we quit a job voluntarily; sometimes the job ends because the employer shuts down all or part of their organisation.
Other times the job ends because of a disagreement with the manager or with the other employees. Regardless of the reason, being unemployed creates an employment gap and needs to be reduced, especially if you have been unemployed for a while.
What should you do to improve your hiring chances?
- Keep focused. Sometimes this is the hardest part of the search. We are willing to change the situation quickly and the instinct brings as to apply for every opportunity. Wrong! Applying for all jobs makes you applying to jobs without meeting the requirements about knowledge, skills, experience….Figure out the Jobs that are best to fit your knowledge, skills and experience. Focus on the Jobs where you meet most requirements and Jobs you would like and would succeed at. Collect the following info:
- a. What are the standard requirements?
- b. What are the job titles?
- c. Which employers in your location hire people doing that?
- Participate in job-clubs and trainings offered by the Public Employment Office to improve your employability chances.
- Fill in the gaps in your CV by doing something constructive with your time, which will improve your motivation and the size of your network. For example: take part-time Jobs or temporary Jobs, take free-lance work, volunteer or learn something relevant.
- Expand you network! Take the benefit of being unemployed to get back in touch with people you´ve known and liked in the past. Social networks such as LinkedIn or Facebook are great for finding people you know. Follow the motto “give to get”. Provide something helpful or useful to the other person and you´ll get it back. Don´t forget that employee referrals are most employers´-preferred method of hiring new employees, and being referred by an employee is extremely unlikely without networking.