4 Keys to Advancing Your Career

Webinar Summary:

Part 1 – Advancing Your Career

Understanding all the tools that are available to a job seeker is critical to success in any job search. Knowing how to take advantage of these tools is an important place to start when in the process of seeking a new career.

Bruce Smith, CEO of The Job Connection and a 25 year veteran of the recruiting and staffing industry, gives a webinar offering advice on how to approach a career change, maximize relationships with recruiting firms, and leverage available tools and resources to advance your career.

In this blog, we share four keys to advancing a career by first looking at an effective approach to a job search. It all starts with a first impression.

Value Proposition: Your Elevator Pitch

Having a grasp on your personal value proposition when approaching your job search should be the starting point. Making a memorable, concise introduction is a great way to make a positive first impression. Remember: Clarity is king. Clearly defining and being able to defend a concise personal testament before connecting about a potential position can help you enter any networking opportunity or interview with confidence. Don’t underestimate the value of a clear and concise elevator pitch. People have short attention spans and you may only get one chance to make an impression. Make it right, the first time.

Relationships

Quality over quantity. This cliche should guide how you approach your professional networking efforts. Having real, meaningful relationships is far more important than racking up hundreds of shallow LinkedIn connections. Relationships should always be the priority, but leveraging these with placement or staffing tools is a great way to stand out. Always approach these relationships with the “pay it forward” mindset; don’t hesitate to help, and don’t hesitate to ask for help.

Worth Investing In

Make your worth known. Showcasing traits like loyalty and integrity will help convince employers that you, as an employee (and their potential investment) are worth it. Passion, drive, and dedication to your work will make you a desirable employee, and these qualities are not easy to fabricate. Approaching positions “employer-minded”, concerning yourself with things like your devotion to your career or ability to perform well, will add value to you (as a potential employee). Present yourself as “that guy”, but do so in a genuine, charismatic way.

Execute The Process

Staying organized and focused through the process of networking, applying for jobs, following up with referrals, and contacting employers can help accelerate the job search process, as well as give you real time feedback on what’s working (and what’s not). Remembering to stay confident in communicating your value proposition, having your resume tailored to each situation, and understanding your audience with each opportunity will prepare you to confidently make each interaction and interview more personal, memorable, and well-delivered. And let your confidence come from Christ. You can try to muster up your own confidence, but ultimately, your strength will fade. Put your confidence in a loving and sovereign Saviour who’s love never fails, and who will never leave you nor forsake you.

Looking at these steps from a widened perspective, it all comes down to being thorough, communicating with clarity, and staying organized. Making memorable impressions, and communicating value, can be some of the most useful strategies in any contact or interview with potential employers. Being well prepared is easily translated through your delivery of these steps and add to your confidence in your job search process.

In our next blog, Bruce pulls back the curtain on how permanent placement and staffing firms operate, think and get compensated for their services. We’ll share some of the strategies Bruce discusses in his webinar for working with and networking with these firms.

You can access the full webinar HERE.