In a tough economy, networking for jobs is a common activity among job seekers. Personal connections can help you find out about open positions and market yourself as a qualified candidate. By controlling the amount of time you spend networking, you can use your time efficiently and avoid overextending yourself during the job search.
It's no secret that job searching can be as time consuming as a full-time job. Between searching for openings, researching companies, updating your resume, writing cover letters, and corresponding with hiring managers, it can be difficult to find any free time. If you are currently employed, your time is even more limited. To keep yourself from becoming overwhelmed, it is important to use your time wisely when networking for jobs.
The amount of time you should be spending networking for jobs will vary based on your individual situation. If you are unemployed or working in a different industry, you should be networking as much as possible. When you are not exposed to industry professionals on a regular basis, networking can help you increase visibility and create name recognition with potential employers. It can also help you learn about open jobs and increase your visibility.
If you are working full time or if you have other non-negotiable obligations, your time will be more limited. Many job seekers spend a great deal of time browsing Internet job websites, looking for open positions. As a result, they lose out on valuable face time with potential employers. To make it easier to judge the relative productivity of your efforts, track your activities for several days, noting how much time you spend on each task. If you find that the time you spend looking for jobs online is more than double the time you spend networking, it may be time to reprioritize. After all, people tend to prefer to do business with people they know; a personal connection is almost always more powerful than a resume in a pile of applications.
Your mental state should also play a role in the time you spend networking for jobs. If you find that job searching is causing an extreme amount of stress, it is smart to pull back. According to a recent story from Business News Daily, taking a break from networking gives you a chance to relax. Networking for jobs can be stressful, and you will be more persuasive when you have a chance to regroup. After a break, you will be rested and ready to tackle the job search.
Personal connections and face-to-face interactions are a crucial part of a successful job search. In general, spending more time networking for jobs is ideal—as long as it does not come at the expense of your health or your professional productivity.
(Photo courtesy of freedigitalphotos.net)
Become a member to take advantage of more features, like commenting and voting.
Register or sign in today!