This time of year offers special opportunities for job seekers. Holiday networking events, for example, can be great chances to meet professionals you might not encounter otherwise. Additionally, some employers are still eager to fill positions before budgets reset or headcount is finalized in the new year, making it a prime time to stand out with a strategic approach.
Here are five ways you can stand out from the competition this holiday season and find a job before the end of the year.
1. Showcase The Right Skills On Your Resume
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When updating your resume, focus on aligning your experience with the specific demands of the industry. Go beyond just listing responsibilities; dig into job descriptions to identify the core skills that consistently appear for your target roles. By tailoring your resume with these keywords, you not only capture the attention of hiring managers but also boost your chances of passing applicant tracking systems (ATS), which are often programmed to scan for these key terms. It's all about keywords!
During the holiday season, hiring managers are often managing tight timelines and high demands, making it crucial for candidates to demonstrate that they’re ready to hit the ground running. Highlighting industry-relevant skills shows you're not only familiar with the landscape but also equipped to make an immediate impact. Be sure to include examples of how you've leveraged these core strengths in previous roles to support team goals or tackle challenges (aka quantify your work experience). The holidays are hectic, so share with the potential employer how you'll be a positive addition to the team by leveraging your strengths and emphasizing your value as a business-of-one.
2. Dress The Part
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Don't underestimate the power of a great first impression. Dress for the interview in professional attire. Even if the job description mentions a casual dress code, such as jeans and a sweatshirt, it’s essential to show respect for the employer by dressing in a way that demonstrates your commitment to making a positive impression. Wearing attire that reflects your professionalism shows you care about how you're perceived and the impression you leave on others.
Not sure what to wear? We recommend dressing conservatively in clothing one level above what the current employees at the company are wearing. You want to look professional, but not like you don't fit in with the workplace culture.
3. Show Your Connection To The Company
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Employers like to hire candidates who have a passion for what they do. Why? Because when people are passionate about their work, that enthusiasm often translates into a higher level of commitment, creativity, and productivity. This intrinsic motivation can lead to consistently strong performance and a positive impact on the team and company as a whole.
In your disruptive cover letter (and during your job interview), demonstrate how and why you admire the company. Highlight what you love most about their products and services. Give examples of how you have personally used them in your own life with success. The more you can show them you understand and respect the business, the more likely you'll impress the hiring manager and move forward in the interview process.
4. Demonstrate Your Value
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It's important to remember that you're a business-of-one, and you're trying to sell the service you provide as a business-of-one to employers (the customers who will be paying you for the service).
To find a job during the holidays, you must adequately demonstrate your value as a business-of-one and highlight your strengths and the specific benefits you bring as a potential employee throughout the hiring process. How do you do this? Well, make sure to quantify your work experience on your resume. Use numbers to showcase your accomplishments. Clearly state how you'll make or save the company money with your employment. Do this, and you'll easily become one of the top candidates for the position.
5. Express Gratitude
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The holidays are busy for everyone. When you're applying for jobs during the holiday season, keep gratitude in mind. This positive mindset not only helps you stay resilient but also shines through in your applications and interviews, leaving a memorable impression on potential employers.
After every job interview, always send a thank-you note. It's just the polite thing to do, and you'll score more points with the hiring manager. Even if you get rejected, or never hear back about a position, make sure you send an email thanking the employer for the opportunity and wish them the best of luck with finding the right job candidate.
Don't be bitter. Be gracious. You never know what will happen in the future. You might want to apply for another job at the company down the line. So, don't let your frustration get the best of you. Remember: If you get rejected, they didn't say, "No, not ever." They just said, "No, not today."
A successful holiday job search depends on a solid strategy. Follow the guidelines above and land a job this holiday season!
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If you didn’t watch the VMAs (Video Music Awards) last weekend, then you missed an important career coaching session from Lady Gaga. It doesn’t matter what you think of the controversial artist who has risen to mega-stardom in the last few years. The fact is, she can teach you a thing or two (or three!) about career development – and she sure does make a splash doing it!
Dress Like a Man = Delivering the Unexpected
In her opening performance (and throughout the entire show), Lady Gaga was dressed as a man. Up until now, you could guarantee she would wear something outrageous. Thus, the pressure was on for her to keep up the trend. And she did it, by doing the unexpected – being the complete opposite of herself. Now, am I suggesting you all do the same? Of course not! But, the concept of recognizing the need to get people’s attention if you want them to listen to you should not be lost here.
You can use this principal to step back and contemplate what you are currently doing to get eyeballs and ear canals on you. Ask yourself the following, "If you are working, what are you doing to make your boss and co-workers pay attention to you? If you are between jobs, what kind of impression are you making when you network?" While you don’t have to dress crazy or act outlandish, you do need to seriously evaluate how you can take each interaction up a notch and make yourself more memorable.
Lady Gaga Career Takeaway #1: It’s your job to get people’s attention.Stand for Something & Don’t Be Shy About It
It’s no secret Lady Gaga is all about self-expression and equality. She did an entire tour around the world about bringing together people who feel like misfits or social outcasts. She is an artist who loves to perform using this theme. Her personal brand is clear because she has made it easy to understand what she believes in. In the opening of the VMAs, Lady Gaga did a monologue. And of course, it was about this very subject. She sticks with her theme and continues to educate people on it. This is personal branding at its best – and probably the single biggest mistake the average professional is making. If you don’t stand for something in your work, you don’t have the ability to position yourself as an expert. You have no real reason to stand up and make statements and take actions that will define you as someone to pay attention to. So, as scary as it may seem to articulate your beliefs (especially, knowing some will agree and some won’t), it must be done if you want to move forward in your career. Staying "under the radar" by being adaptable, flexible and having no voice is the fastest way to a dead-end career.
Lady Gaga Career Takeaway #2: Build your professional platform on a set of beliefs you can talk about constantly.Want to Be Likable? Gush Over Your Peers
No matter how much you may dislike Lady Gaga’s music or persona, you really can’t hate a person who has such admiration and respect for her peers as she does. Given her current stardom, it would be easy to see her take on a better-than mentality, but she truly loves other artists and pays them public compliments incessantly. At the VMAs she got to give a fellow female icon, Brittney Spears a lifetime achievement award. It was clear she loved doing it as she showered Brittney with praise for what she had given the entertainment industry. I don’t care who you are, one of the fastest ways to get people to like you is to hear you pay someone else a compliment. When you have the confidence and presence of mind to recognize others for their hard work, you say a lot about your character and professionalism.
Lady Gaga Career Takeaway #3: Complimenting others improves your professional credibility. Lady Gaga Proves the Following
The one thing you can say about Lady Gaga is she proves we can all build a powerful personal brand on our own terms – and earn respect for it too. Using the tips above, Lady Gaga has turned her talents, tenacity and good timing into one of the most recognizable personal brands in the world. So, love her or hate her, the reality is, as a career coach she can teach us all a few things about career development.
Now, Let’s Put Gaga’s Approach into Practice
If you're one of our CareerHMO.com members, this is a simple reminder you already have your very own group of talent agents (a.k.a. career coaches) to help you define and promote your personal brand. We know it can be hard to figure this out on your own. Even the mega-stars have entourages of people helping them, right? That’s why you should continue to work with us to ensure you are sending the right message.
J.T. O’Donnell is the founder of CAREEREALISM.com and CEO of CareerHMO.com, a web-based career development company.Image from s_bukley/Shutterstock
