Right now, we’re making headway into a brand-new year after many of us have had time to reenergise and take stock of life’s goals over the well-earned holiday season. There’s no better time than now to explore all-new opportunities and turn those yearning aspirations into real action.
Of course, the employment market can be incredibly competitive and fast-moving, which means it’s not always easy to find and secure those positions that best match your skills, experiences and most importantly, interests.
image via pinterest
To help kickstart your career in 2019, Nicole Gorton, Director of Robert Half Australia shares five goals to aim for to help you find the right job and become a stand-out candidate.
1: Update your LinkedIn profile and resume
In a fast-moving job market, it’s no use waiting to find a job before updating your resume or LinkedIn page. Why? Because it takes time to do this diligently and time is something you will not have. Any delay in making an application could mean you run the risk of falling to the bottom of the pile or missing the deadline altogether. What’s more, recruiters often use LinkedIn to proactively seek out passive jobseekers, which means an outdated profile could mean you’re missing out on opportunities without even knowing.
Make sure your resume is ready and raring to go the moment a new opportunity pops up and always maintain your LinkedIn profile so it accurately reflects your professional accomplishments to date.
2: Build on your skillsets
To successfully secure a role, you must demonstrate to an employer that you can bring added value over the competition. Think about how you could gain an advantage over other job candidates, whether it be by learning a new skill or gaining a higher-level certification for existing skills.
By taking this approach, you could distinguish yourself from many other candidates as well as demonstrate some incidental, yet highly attractive qualities. For example, pursuing professional development opportunities will show a willingness to learn, commitment and proactivity – qualities that can add great value to an organisation.
3: Seek out a job that makes you happy
Research by Robert Half reveals that having a sense of pride in an organisation and achieving a sense of accomplishment from your work are two of the most important factors when it comes to workplace happiness. To experience these two emotions from your work, it’s important for jobseekers to find a job where they can be sure they will be the right fit. This means ensuring that your values are aligned with the organisation and that you have all the necessary skills and experiences to fulfil the role requirements and work well with colleagues.
4: Audit your online and social media presence
When you’re in a professional mindset, your social media channels can be easy to forget, but there’s every chance an employer could refer to your social channels to gain a more holistic picture of who you really are. After all, getting to know a candidate’s personality traits is crucial to understanding whether they are likely to communicate and collaborate effectively while upholding the workplace culture. So, if there’s anything on social media that might lead employers astray, now’s the time to review your pages and privacy settings and amend or delete as appropriate.
5: Work on expanding your professional network
There’s no doubt, recruiting sites and job boards will be instrumental to your efforts applying for and potentially securing a new role this year. But don’t discount the value of building your professional network and researching industry updates at the same time. By attending events held by organisations, conferences and tradeshows, you may find opportunities to meet other professionals who could assist you in your search or even recruiters who might remember you when a suitable role becomes available.
As many organisations continue to plan for the year ahead, now is the perfect time to put these goals into action. Then, you can be sure you’re ready and fully-equipped for the next and most suitable opportunity to revitalise your career.
