The Resume Black Hole
I think everybody has experienced the dreaded resume blackhole at some point or another. This is when you send out dozens of applications and hear absolutely nothing back. It’s like your resume went to the same vortex that mismatched socks and one hit wonder bands go. This is extremely frustrating, so how can you prevent this from happening?
Large Job Boards Don’t Work
The reason large job boards don’t work is because you and a thousand other people are all applying for the same job. A large number of those people aren’t even qualified for the job, they just apply anyway. So, because we are dealing with such large numbers, the odds of the hiring manager finding your resume in a stack that size is say 1 in a thousand.
However, if you search for openings on smaller, local or niche job boards your resume may only be competing with as few as 50 to 100 applicants. So you could be 10 TIMES more likely to get an interview simply because you are decreasing the applicant pool.
Get on Linkedin and Get Going
80% of jobs are filled by networking. Let me say that again. Out of all open positions, even the ones you see on large job boards, 80% are filled through networking. What does that mean? It means you need to start meeting people, talking to people you know about the company they work for. Then go to the company websites who employ your friends and contacts and look for open positions.
Your probably thinking “so all the jobs posted on big job boards are just a waste of money?”. Well, not exactly. This is how it works. You see a job posting on some large job board and you say to yourself, “hey my friend Dave works for that company”. You apply to the job, but you also call your friend Dave so he’ll give the hiring manager a heads up to look for your resume. That’s how 80% of jobs are filled by networking. The job board’s function is first and formost to Advertise the Job. The rest is up to you and your network.
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