How to guarantee you land the right job

How do you know if it is the right job? You had a job for a very long time. 10 years. 16 years. 25 years. Doesn’t happen often anymore that people are employed for companies for a long time. More often than not, employees move before they hit the 10-year mark.

The instability of our economy, the change in the way people work, opportunities for growth, technological improvements, and mergers and acquisitions impact the length of employment.

Sometimes you who started a job when they were 18 and are still there at 48 or 53. Then it happens, your job is eliminated or the conditions at work due to a buyout or management change become intolerable.

You end up without a job

Naturally, if you were employed a long time, you have a huge fear of being unemployed. This is the unknown. You think your friends will think you are lazy if you don’t find something right away.

Everyone tells you to take anything. Your severance payment is soon to be gone. If you collect unemployment, you are afraid you will end up on unemployment for months. Perhaps you remember the stories of the 99ers during the recession. You want to be productive, but you want the right job.

It seems you managed your job search right on the front end. You had your resume prepared professionally, you conducted research to find new opportunities, your profile is complete on LinkedIn, and you prepared for the interview.

You even land the job

But then you find yourself the holder of empty promises three to six months down the road. It is the wrong job. The salary which sounded good in the beginning has contingencies. It was based on projections and the projections missed the mark. The benefits changed. The hours are suddenly much more or at different times than discussed in the interview. You want to move on. Should you?

The problem with landing the wrong job

Your resume resonated with success stories and long-term employment. Moving on seems like the right thing to do, you just can’t find anything good about your new company. However, if you go at it like a bull in a china shop bumping everything along the way in your haste to get out of there, you may make another bad mistake.

You may grab the next job that looks good to you and end up with a similar situation 6 to 8 months down the road. Very soon, your resume changes from a resume with solid work experience to one that is all choppy because you keep jumping out of one bad job into another one.

How to guarantee a job is the right job?

First of all, SLOW DOWN! Don’t let those fears take over.
Network with others to learn about new opportunities. Networking doesn’t just mean LinkedIn connections. LinkedIn is a tool to help you find your network, but it doesn’t mean that you only look there. Pick up the phone!
Look for opportunities in the hidden job market. Don’t look for the same stale fruit everyone else is finding. Look for new opportunities that companies are planning. Read the newspaper for new ventures, new contracts, and new businesses.

Conduct research for the right job

Research the company online from multiple perspectives, not just their own website. Fortune. CNN Money. Google references.
Do informational interviews with current company employees. Find out what they like about the company and how it feels to work there.
When you get to the interview stage, take notes, understand what they are offering.
Before you accept the job, ask for the terms in writing. It used to be that a verbal agreement was good, but today you need more than that. You need to make sure every promise is in writing.

Following the points above are critical to making sure that you have successful employment and the right job for you. Jumping into the next role too quickly can mean another search in the near future.

I use interactive live writing and coaching sessions to capture your value and position you for success in your resume, on LinkedIn, and throughout your job search. I help bring out your passion and stories to dig deep into your experiences with you. Learn more here