Getting your foot in the door: tips on how to get that job!

Posted on April 01, 2018 by Karen Hennessy-Coles, One of Thousands of Career Coaches on Noomii.

A lot of people ask me what they can do to get into their chosen career. This question comes from people at all stages of their career, from those graduating to those retiring from their first career.

A resume which reflects your best self, details your deliverables, skills and experience is crucial. Applying for job vacancies is the obvious choice when job seeking. However a resume only gives a one dimensional view of you. It’s also likely that when you apply for a job you will be one of a number (on occasion 100’s of others) who are potentially applying for the role. If you are wanting to get into a highly sought after industry, chances are the positions may not be publically advertised.

So applying for vacancies as they arise is one way of gaining that job, but if that isn’t working what else can you try. Here are a number of tips which may enable you to get that dream job.

1. Become a member of the professional society / institute
If you’re uncertain, Google or social media are great places to start. Here you are likely to find a wealth of information about the profession you’re interested in. This can include job vacancies, competencies, workshops, events, educational development, industry journals, latest thinking in the industry. Most societies or institutes will require you to become a member for an annual fee. See what this fee will give you and whether it is worth joining. In some industries they will expect that you are a member of your institute and this may be a pre-requisite for the vacancy.

2. Attend professional workshops, events, classes, networking
Most Institutes and Societies will run numerous events where you can learn more about the industry, latest thinking to remain up to date and meet people who are likely to be part of the profession. Some of these events may be free, others at varying cost. You would be able to find out about these from the institute /society or those working in the profession.

3. Use social media
This is an easy and cheap way to get an insight into the profession you are considering. LinkedIn particularly is a great place to learn about the industry and to make yourself known. However, don’t rule out others such as Facebook which also have great groups and content. Giving well thought out and insightful comments on others posts, writing your own posts or sharing others posts will enable you to network with others in the field. Using the groups to ask for advise and tips are also welcomed and usually well responded to by group members.

If you are in a creative field then Instagram can be a great way to become known. Ensure that you post regularly!

4. Join local groups
Local Groups covering all interests are everywhere. If there isn’t one which is right for you maybe start one!

Meetup is a great online way to find local groups who, as the name suggests, meet up in your area. Give them a go, pop along and see what you like and what you don’t. For those reading this who are now filled with dread at the thought of meeting a bunch of strangers here are some tips:

• take a long a friend!
• focus on the others in the group, ask them about themselves (people generally love talking about themselves!), people will be focussing on you far less that you think.
• don’t go with the thought that you are ‘selling yourself’. Go to learn, to meet new people, to find out about them, what they do, where they work, what they do for fun, what they want from the group, how long they’ve been a member. As someone who has just launched a meet up group (shameless plug;-)), I can reassure you that the group leader will do all they can to make you feel welcome and comfortable.

5. Friends, family, contacts
If you know someone who works in the industry you are wanting to get into ask them to go for coffee or to have a phone call with you to talk about their work life. Most people are happy to help if they can, especially if they have a personal connection. What’s the worst that can happen? They say no. In this situation you ask someone else.

6. Recruitment Agencies
I thought a lot about whether recruitment agencies made the list. Generally most agencies are interested in those who have the right experience to ‘hit the ground running’. Ultimately they want to be able to place a candidate and make a sale. However, if you can, it would be worth linking to a recruitment consultant who specializes in the profession you want. I wouldn’t suggest spending too much time on this if you get no .

7. Work experience
We all know that recruiters generally look for previous experience. Think laterally about how you could gain the experience they are looking for which you may not have. Firstly you need to identify what you need to develop. Once you know this consider the best way to bridge this gap.

• If you’re currently working is there potential to gain these skills in your current work environment?
• Could you take a voluntary role with a charity?
• Offer to work for free for a week or two or a day here and there?
• Gain experience in your social life, for example if you want to be an events planner, plan an event for your family, friends or a social group you belong to.
  Take on some pro bono clients to develop a portfolio, let them know that you’re wanting to gain experience and will work with the for free in return for a testimonial. This may be useful to gain a number of skills including, web design, training and workshops, stylist, writing etc. the list is endless!

8. Find a Mentor
A mentor in this sense is someone who is in a role which you would like to have at some point in the future. A mentor can help to advise and guide you in your journey to get there. They can give you some insider knowledge in terms of what the profession is ‘really’ like. What experience, skills and behaviours employers are wanting from the future recruits. It also gives you a great contact who maybe able to support you in widening your network or to help you get your foot in the door.

It’s worth remembering that ultimately a recruiter wants to find the right candidate, as fast as possible for the lowest cost. As the candidate you need the right people to know you exist and have skills and experience that you have.

Hopefully this blog has given you some fresh ideas and thoughts about how to get the foot in the door of the career you want. Now it’s over to you. How much do you really want it? How much are you willing to work to get the career you want? What action are you going to take now?