How to improve your chances of finding the right role

It’s obvious that there’s a lot of people looking for work right now.

And that’s going to remain the case for a while, particularly as many of those currently furloughed are likely to be made redundant as the scheme tapers off.

I’ve personally found new roles for over 500 candidates in the tech markets, and as a business we’ve helped thousands more get jobs along the way. So I’ve learned a fair bit about what works, whether you intend to work with recruiters or go it alone.

Here’s my top tips for what you can do to impact your chances of getting the right role.

Ikigai “a reason for being”

The Japanese secret to living your best life. A great starting point to help you understand what you might want your next career step to look like.

The knowledge and reach of your network

Your network is likely to be a great asset to your work search, but like many things it needs effort. Pick ten people you know and ask them for advice on your next steps. You’re sure to learn a lot, and done well it will lead to some great job opportunities.

Here's a video and post that explains a bit more.

A useful LinkedIn profile

If you’re seeing this, then you’re using LinkedIn. But so many people who do have a profile that provides little value to their work search.

So make sure your profile represents you in the best light. It shouldn’t be a replica of your CV, but many companies will place as much weight on it, particularly when initially filtering.

A CV that sells you

Having a good CV won’t get you a job, but a bad one will lose you the chance.

Far too many I see are boring bland replicas of job descriptions, that do nothing for conveying the personality and capabilities of the person I’m talking to.

Does your CV give a taste of what you’d want to convey at interview?

Practice your storytelling

If your CV is doing its job, you’ll get interviews. Which is where you will need to create an impact and be memorable. That means you’ll need to be able to tell a (concise and honest) story in answer to the key questions you’ll face.

The video below from Neil Bearden will help you on this.

Set goals

As with many things in life, setting some goals will help you get further ahead. Some you’ll be able to control, some you won’t.

Have a mix of what you can commit to, like approaches to your network, and what you’re hoping to achieve, like interviews.

Be resilient

In good times then it can still be challenging to find work, so right now resilience is likely to be more important than ever.

That’s partly about dealing with setbacks, but don’t overlook the other part of resilience you’ll need, which is the ability to learn from those knocks and improve the next day.

“Turn your wounds into wisdom.”

(Oprah Winfrey)

Be realistic

There will be a number of things that influence how urgently you need a new role, but whatever the balance between needing a job and waiting for the ideal one, make sure you’re being pragmatic on what is out there and what you can achieve.

Take advice from others, but ultimately make your own call on what’s realistic.

Following these bits of advice won’t guarantee you’ll find something new, but it will give you a much better chance.

If there's other areas that you feel you need some help with then please comment below.

And if you’re working in the tech startup and scaleup market in the UK, particularly in a senior or leadership role, there’s a good chance I can help you in more detail. Feel free to connect and message me so we can talk.