Your 3 essentials to supercharge your job search this spring
The brighter and sunnier days have finally arrived, dear marketing friend!
And whilst I'm now on the lookout for blooming flowers and popping colours everywhere, I can't help but think about how brutal this winter has been, not only in terms of dark days but about how challenging the job market has been.
So if you've been actively looking for a new role and feeling a little bit overwhelmed and tired, fear not, dear PLM legend, as I've got you covered this month!
I'm Anaïs, your dedicated career strategist and without further ado, let's get this party started!
The state of today's job market
2024 has brought its lot of changes and curveballs in the marketing world, as more roles became available asking for skills and knowledge related to influencer marketing, AI tools, or more data and technology proficiency requirements, to name a few.
2025 is no different, and we can expect even bigger changes in the market - from AI now being used by more than half of the companies in the market (for the better or the worse) to businesses getting their heads around what flexible working looks like for their requirements AND their employees' needs. Click here to find out about the 5 trends in talent acquisition this year - i.e. what companies are really getting their heads around.
The good news? All of these changes don't mean you have to navigate these uncharted waters blind - and alone!
Here are the three must-haves to maximise your chances of success and land your next dream role ASAP:
Get complete clarity on your top skills and strengths
This one might seem obvious, but it's easier said than done.
A lot of clients I work with think that an effective job search means adding the latest experience to their CV and voila! And while that's a good place to start, it's just the beginning of the process.
Here's a practical 3-step framework to help you on that wild ride:
Keep your medium to long-term career plan in mind: want to start your own thing? Develop your management and leadership skills? Niche down towards a specific expertise?
Starting with the end in mind will help you think about what this means for your next role. You're not "just" looking to change; you're actively taking steps towards the future you truly want to create. ✨
Feedback matters: Don't put the pressure on yourself to get all of the answers: funny how sometimes we tend to perceive ourselves differently than others, right?
That's where the magic of the feedback comes in. It can be as simple as a few questions, and I'd recommend asking a panel of 3 to 5 people who are a mix between family, friends and colleagues.
Click here to access the template I use with my clients
Don't be afraid to build a bigger toolbox that what you need: a really helpful exercise is to list every skill you've got. And I mean all of them, whether that's something you've acquired throughout your professional experience or in life, it matters.
The idea here is to build your own database of what you're good at because a) it boosts the self-confidence and b) you can tap into it and make the tweaks you need on your CV at anytime.
You'd be surprised to see how much there's on that list; don't hold back!
This way for inspiration and build that skills toolbox of yours
Tap into the 70% of the hidden job market
You might know this already, but what you see on LinkedIn or other job boards is actually 30% of the available opportunities in the market. So how about we go after that bigger percentage instead?
Here are the three avenues I'd highly encourage you to think about:
Cultivate and strengthen your existing network: whether you're scheduling regular coffee catch ups, sending a message when the seasons change to stay in touch, or sharing some articles and resources you think would be helpful to your contacts, staying in touch with your network can have a massive impact on your career trajectory and growth.
Need help with that? Check out February's blog post and scroll straight to the section "Supercharge your networking skills"
Get some market insights from the people who're actively hiring: there are two problems with having a strategy that relies "only" on applying for advertised roles: you only tap into a small part of the market (as mentioned above) AND you're trapped in an echo chamber where you get to see the same companies publishing the same wish lists over and over again.
That's when having conversations with hiring managers and recruiters truly matters. They will be able to share with you what are the top attributes of the candidates they're looking for, what they're seeing the companies are doing, and my personal favourite: some guidance as to what job titles you could apply for.
You've got a few options to go about it, including sending a message on LinkedIn to connect or attending networking events where these professionals will be. There are no right or wrong approaches; just pick the one that seems the easiest, even if I understand these things can be scary. Remember: you're in uncharted waters here, but you're tapping into these 70% of opportunities that are not made publicly available, so here's your chance!
Think outside the box: back in 2015, freshly graduated from my Master Degree in Procurement, I was actively looking for a role and thought: there are so many other fresh graduates like myself out there; how can I stand out?
I decided to create an "infographic" CV, which was essentially a visual representation of my career journey and profile. I shared it with my network, and before I knew it, I was on an Eurostar train to get started in this new buyer role in London.
I'm not advising you to create an infographic CV (even if there's nothing wrong with that!) but I'd invite you to consider your options, additionally to the awesome CV you've put together.
And worst come to worst, you could always post jokes on your LinkedIn account and build an audience; it seems that it's working pretty well for Ken Cheng.
Keep the momentum going despite the setbacks
Last but not least, and probably the hardest of these three to implement, is to find your grove in the chaos of it all.
Forget about the stop-and-go approach or applying to 50 roles in a week and then stopping for 2 months. This is what will erode your self-confidence in the long term.
I've experienced personally how disheartening it is when you give everything you have, you go all the way through a final interview stage, to be told that "the other candidate was a better fit for us, but you're truly a talented professional, and we have no doubt you'll find the right opportunity very soon".
In these dark moments, the last thing that I wanted to do was get back out there and apply to more roles. And I'll tell you now the same thing I've shared with my clients who are actively searching for a new job: don't put yourself in a position where you end up relying on that one opportunity only.
Even if you want it to work out, make sure that you've got a few chats lined up with your network afterwards or job roles saved with a plan to apply for then. Why? Because if you secure that role, you can always cancel these plans and celebrate, big time! But if it doesn't, you will thank yourself for not having to start from scratch.
And remember, should you find yourself in that dark place of self-doubt, after weeks (if not months) of job hunting, I'm always just a call away to support you on that wild journey
To summarise:
🫵 It starts with you: identify your key skills & strengths, gather feedback from others and build that toolbox of yours. Use this to supercharge your job search, so you can move away from being influenced by what you see in the job ads.
🕵️♀️ The hidden job market is where the magic happens: network strategically, connect with hiring managers, and fire up your creative juices to stand out in conversations and applications.
🦸 Your mindset and resilience will get you through: avoid an all-or-nothing job search approach, keep multiple opportunities in play, and don’t let setbacks shake your confidence for too long, as you can be at risk to miss the right next thing.
Food for thoughts:
When was the last time you stopped, took a step back, and reflected on the lessons learnt so far on your job search journey? What does that tell you about what needs to happen next?
Career Coach, DEI Trainer, Speaker and Women Empowerer.
