PeopleGrowth LLC | Atlanta Career and Life Coach | Communications Training

Career Search Tools No One Talks About
June 2009

Many Internet and magazine articles about transitioning from one career to another begin with the importance of establishing a good resume. There is no doubt in my mind that a solid resume is a great tool in your job search. However, you should know about some other essential “tools” to add to your job search “tool belt.”

Knowing yourself and what you truly want in your career is as (if not more) important than the basic job search tools. Clarifying what success means to you, identifying your values, creating your ideal career, developing a “Board of Directors” to hold you accountable, and closely examining your skills and abilities takes time and reflection as enter the job search arena. And it’s time well spent.

Virtually every career coaching client I’ve worked with comes to me with an immediate “plan”:

I need a resume
I need to network
I want interviews
I have to have a job within [X] days or weeks

So we spend the first 10 minutes or so talk about immediate. Then, I ask the question, “What do you do for fun?”

My client usually looks at me quizzically and, often, with annoyance. Then I explain that knowing what you do for fun is one perspective from which to view your career transition. It essentially addresses whether or not you want your work to be fulfilling as you enter your next phase of life.

Now I know what you’re thinking. Wait a minute! The resume, networking, and interviewing are what every job seeker needs. Well, you’re right. AND… you need to focus on YOU. You have worked long and hard hours in your career. As you change careers, it’s important to realize that you get to choose the:

Work you do
Impact you want to make
Hours you want to work
Time for play

…and so much more!

Clarify what success means to you. Look back at your former career(s). What made you successful?

Identify your values. Values are principles that guide you in every day of your life. So which values are significant to you? In your next career, how important is:

Integrity?
Creativity?
Discipline?
Meaningful work?

These are just a few of many values that, once discovered, can help you choose the right type of work and the place to work.

Create your ideal career. What does your new job/career look like? Describe a really great day at work. Who do you want to work with? What do you see out of your office window as you sit there every day—assuming there is an office! How much money do you want to make? What are your long-term goals? What does your like look like in 5, 10, or 20 years. Where would you like to be in your life?

Remember the “what do you do for fun” question? How can you incorporate fun into your career so that you can enjoy waking up every day and being excited about going to work? These are only a few of many questions to ask yourself when you create your ideal career.

Develop your own “Board of Directors.” Job leads, referrals, resources, information, and general emotional support and encouragement can come from everywhere—your significant other, family members, friends, school chums, people in your community, hairdressers, dentists, physicians, lawyers—basically anyone you know. Enlist these people onto your own personal “Board of Directors”; namely, people who know people and people who will support you in whatever way you need to be supported. Give the gift of receiving. You know how it feels when you help someone. Now let someone help you. You only have to ask. If the answer “no,” then the operative word for you is “next.” Find someone else who will.

Identifying the members of your personal “Board of Directors” can create a solid foundation, not only for developing your ideal career but also finding people who can help you stick to your goals or, basically, hold you accountable to your own agenda.

Closely examine your skills and experience. What can you bring to the job or organization? If you’ve been in a particular field for a long time (e.g., 10+ years), you may take the tasks associated with your field for granted—you know and perform them as naturally as you breathe. Keep in mind that the work you do so naturally has real value elsewhere, no matter how ordinary you think it may be.

Write down all of the tasks you perform, no matter how mundane they may appear to you. Start with a list of job responsibilities for position—but don’t stop there. Now identify your skills from the list of job responsibilities.

As you look through on line job descriptions and/or talk to people who are doing work that you find appealing and exciting, learn what specific qualifications potential employers are looking for. Pinpoint your own skills, and bring out the “juice” in your everyday tasks.

Take the time to know yourself and identify what you truly want in your new career. Unquestionably, knowing the basic job search tools is important, and there a great number of resources available to learn how to use them effectively. What success means to you, what’s important, and determining your ideal career are also vital career search tools and important to add to your career search tool belt.

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