It’s an unsettling time for most of us and no-one knows the longer-term economic impacts that we may be facing.
It can be particularly tough if you are currently out of work and on the search for a new role. Here are a few recommendations if you are currently job searching: 1. Don’t stop looking!
It’s important that you keep searching for roles and keep applying. Companies are still advertising and hiring. Maybe not as many as usual but there are still jobs out there. 2. Keep building your network Start with LinkedIn – connect with old colleagues, update your profile, become active on the news feed by liking and sharing posts – all of this will help build your professional brand and get you noticed.
LinkedIn is likely to become even more of an essential tool over the coming months, so get active now. 3. Use the time to update your skills If you have a little more time on your hands, use it wisely. That’s doesn’t mean downloading the new Netflix drama to binge, as temping as it can be! Instead consider taking the free month of LinkedIn Learning and adding some new short courses to your skillset. 4. Review your professional branding Take stock and ensure your applications are as strong as they can be. Does your resume need some TLC or can you try a new cover letter template? Additionally, it’s a good opportunity to review your online reputation – what do you see if you google yourself?
5. Connect with recruiters
Most recruiters are still working and working hard. Reach out to them – use LinkedIn, email through their website, or give them a call. Recruiters can be an essential part of an effective job search strategy and they are waiting to hear from you.
6. Keep positive
With so much worrying information in the news and online, nevermind knowing where your next toilet roll will come from, it can be easy to get stressed and feel overwhelmed. Add to that your job search worries and it can be a slippery slope to anxiety and potentially worse.
Take some time each day to work on your mental health.
Have a walk, do some exercise, download the free Insight Timer meditation app and use it, call a friend or relative and have a laugh about a funny memory, turn on Spotify and listen to some old tunes from your teenage years, dance around your house, stretch, sit in the sun for 10 minutes without any electronics and just listen to the sounds around you, make some homemade veggie soup, you get the idea! Take a break.
If Blue Sky Career Consulting can help with your job search, don’t hesitate to get in touch.