Job search from a candidate's perspective
The title says it all.
Once you land you will be very busy, so at a minimum send out a note to your strongest networking contacts before you start your new job.
When you land having those strong contacts in your network will come in handy. I use mine all the time.
For the rest of your contacts, set aside an hour or so each weekend to let people know.
You have spent all the time and effort in building your search network. Keep the door open by retaining your dedicated e-mail and cell phone you used during your search. People in your network:
· My need your help in the future
· Hear of opportunities that you may be interested in
· Send someone in their network your way (usually someone looking for new role)
Time to celebrate. You’ve reached the other side. A firm believes that you will bring value to them.
Most likely, your friends, colleagues, spouse, etc. where a big reason you reached the other side.
So invite them to celebrate with you.
Make it meaningful as you will likely be back to ask for help again.
After I started my firm, I got a call from someone in transition who wanted to network. I immediately recognized their name, as they had been pretty much a jackass to me when I reached out to them in my transition.
This person missed two meetings, though since they offered, we did connect by phone. On the call, they were typing so loud that I thought the keyboard was going to break before I could get off the line.
When we met (I showed up the first time), I mentioned we had met before, their face went blank. They asked “Was I much help”. Despite the rising temptation, I bit my tongue and answered “Not really.” Their face went from blank to red. I explained what happened before.
Okay, what gives – why no shotgun blast? Two reasons.
First, the person who referred this person was someone who had done a number of favors for me.
Second, I care about my reputation. The bomb had gone off, no use trying to defuse now. So blasting would have done nothing for us, though now I would have someone talking poorly about me. So in the end I’d lose. Instead, I gave honest feedback and kept my reputation intact.
Chances are you will be in transition again. So protect your reputation.
One of the best pieces of advice I got when I started my role at RBC Dain Rauscher (which is now RBC Wealth Management) was to set aside an hour a day to work. As time went on and my calendar rarely had any holes in it, that hour a day to work was like gold.
I extended the concept to block one or two networking times a week, either early coffee or lunch. Due to work constraints I had to cancel about a third of the time, but I was networking pretty regularly to keep up relationships.
The best time to build a network is when you do not need one. It allows you to build a relationship with the person versus needing to ask for a networking favor immediately.
Just get started, you will be glad you did.
Here are a few ideas to make your network strong. You never know when you will need it and who knows, it may bring you an opportunity when you are not even looking.
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