One of the 10%?
You’re not alone if you decided to put your search on hold for new career opportunities in 2020. In a previous column ‘There’s a global Pandemic! Should I stay or should I go?’ I highlighted that regardless of economic uncertainty, there is always an element of risk with changing jobs and to just make sure it’s a calculated one.
More than 10% of my LinkedIn network in Luxembourg changed jobs in 2020, that’s about 3,000 people, given that more than 95% of employees move jobs on average every 4-5 years, it’s probably a little less than previous years.
My network is heavy on Finance, Accounting and Legal, and indications in growth are promising and it’s likely we will see an increase in movements as more career opportunities present themselves in 2021.
Quitters Day!
Keeping to our New Year’s resolutions are not easy, with most surveys indicating that regardless of how small or large the goal is, 80% of people drop them by the second week in February and Strava (the Sports app) call the 19th January ‘Quitters Day’!
There’s a whole library of books on how to manage your goals and create habits to achieve long-term change. When approaching your career this can also be a useful exercise to undertake, a good career coach can support you in this process, you can find more in a previous column ‘Would you advise seeking help from a career coach if you have no idea what to do?’ .
Whether it’s a new year’s resolution or a goal at anytime of the year to change jobs, I recommend treating it like a project with specific steps and manageable and measurable activities.
Resume
Crafting the right CV takes time, ensure you prepare your CV before you need it!
You’ll find some tips in my previous columns ‘How should I format my CV?’ and ‘How do I get my CV past the HR robots’
LinkedIn is the number one tool used by HR and Recruitment firms to find staff. Make sure your profile reflects your CV. Even if you’re not proactively looking now, you’ll more likely be approached by head-hunters about interesting opportunities.
When saving the updated information on your profile, I recommend not informing your network about the update, in case your colleagues and boss are made aware and reach a conclusion, even if it’s the wrong one!
Recruitment Firms
Identify the right recruitment firm to partner with. Use your close and trusted network to advise you on which one to approach. Be mindful that a recruitment firm is interested in working with you exclusively, if you are contacting several firms it may reduce your chances of being considered for opportunities, not multiply them.
Network
Don’t wait until you need a network to build one, it’ll probably be too late!
Identify who you know in your network who you trust implicitly and inform them of your intention to consider new career opportunities.
Follow companies and connect with individuals on LinkedIn, give yourself a weekly objective of how many people you wish to add to your network.
Job Sites
Register for job alerts on all of the relevant jobsites and LinkedIn, create specific criteria for your chosen industry sector and discipline. Read these daily, the ideal opportunity could appear at any time.
Ideas for Manageable and Measurable Activities
Set yourself weekly activities for your job search, such as …
NB. Always be mindful that it is possible that the content of your messages, applications or conversations may not remain confidential.
Rather than focussing on the outcome, setting and reaching activities can maintain your motivation. You can take solace that reaching your weekly activities is a process of elimination until the right opportunity at the right moment is uncovered.
Don’t be a quitter, you’ll have beaten 80% of the population if you’re still working on your goals and activities if you reach the third week in February … Good Luck!
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Darren Robinson is the Managing Partner at Anderson Wise, an independent local recruitment firm in Luxembourg. www.andersonwise.com
