Target, target, target. Focus.

If you don’t know what you want to do with your career, you’re not ready to write your resume. A resume is NOT a history of your career. It is a sales pitch. You MUST tell your “customer” what h/she wants to hear. How will you solve the prospective employer’s problems? How will you ease his pain? In the private sector, you can’t help him make money in some way, whether directly or through support, you have little value.

Read each job announcement you apply to, pull out the key words and target your resume to that job. Yes, every resume may have to be tweaked a bit, but you’ll enjoy much more success.

Many of us have come into the social media age kicking and screaming. And some of you are not using social media at all. If you’re one of the latter and you’re a job seeker, you’ve got to get on the band wagon and use LinkedIn, use Facebook, use Twitter to get back to work.

Employers are posting their job openings on social media well before they pay the big bucks to post on Monster or Careerbuilder. And recruiters are mining the social media sites to find qualified candidates for their job openings.

But most of all, successful candidates are using LinkedIn, for instance, to find contacts / hiring managers at the companies they’ve targeted — and come in through a side door to get interviews.

Be sure your profiles are strong and demonstrate your value. Be sure you include a picture and that it is a professional pose. Be sure all your digital dirt is covered wtih positive references.

Make social media work for you.

I recently worked with an out-of-work professional who, I hate to say, was darn lazy. The most work he did was about 30 minutes each day, checking e-mails and one job board to see if there were any new opportunities. He then asked me to send out his resumes for him. Not a bad plan, I guess, if it works.

However, it doesn’t work — well, anyway — for a number of reasons. For instance, by his own admission, he spent the rest of his time “moping around the house” hoping someone would call. I suggested that he do some volunteer work, attend some job-search or industry-specific networking groups, or, at the very least, make some phone calls to friends or past associates who might be of some help.

But no, being proactive wasn’t in his nature and it took him twice as long (maybe three times as long!) to find a job — not because of the economy. He was in a field that is always experiencing a shortage.

The moral here is: Put in the effort. Make it happen.

It’s really up to you. I strongly believe that even if there is only one job out there, it can be yours if you work at it, present yourself in the best possible light and follow up conscientiously

I was just thinking how difficult it must be to begin the job search right now. So many people have been laid off in the past couple of years that those just now starting the job search are way behind the eight ball. For most, who haven’t had to look for a job in many years, this will be a whole new world. No longer will deciding on the quality of paper on which to print your resume an issue worth spending any time on. The considerations now are where to network, which social networking sites will be most helpful, what type of professional services should I purchase to get a jump start on the competition?

And that last one is an important consideration. Unless you’ve been through this job search process recently, you really need some give you that all-important leg up.

I’ve been getting a lot of calls lately from people who insist they want a generic resume. “I don’t care what kind of job I get. I just need a job” or “I’m going to be applying for all kinds of jubs. Do I have to have a different resume each time I apply?”

Yup. ‘Fraid so. Maybe not a totally rewritten resume, but certaining a targeted focus. Can you imagine how many resumes employers are getting for each job posting? Do you think those employers have the time, the energy or the inclination to read between the lines as they skim over your qualifications? You’ll be lucky if they spend as much as 15 seconds on your resume initially.

Therefore, you’ve got to make that resume prove that you are the answer to all their employee dreams. Make the resume focused on the employer’s needs — not your history.

Sure, this all takes work. What? Did you think the job search process should be easy?

Holy cow!

Article  posted November 18 on “The Prox” a blog of The Daily Princetonian:

This Friday, the Davis International Center & Career Services hosted a one hour talk entitled “Job Search in the U.S. & Business Etiquette.” In attendance were 15 international students, although the event proved to be useful to all undergraduates. Speakers emphasized the importance of starting the career-search process as soon as possible. According to the statistics presented, only 25-30% of positions available in the American job market are advertised in public media, and a website such as Monster.com will only have a 7% success rate. This huge void is compensated by jobs obtained through personal connections, and can account up to 70% of all job placements. Hence, networking –the process through which students establish contacts with friends, alumni and teachers who might help in future employment opportunities –is of paramount importance to the job search. Personal contacts are essential in guaranteeing both job positions and graduate school admissions, as well as in helping underclassmen identify their fields of interest.

Why are job candidates so insistent on sitting in front of the computer? Get out, get on the phone, call in markers, build new relationships and connections … For the cost of lunch, you can gain insight into the needs of your targeted employers; for a couple of beers, you can gain entree to the office of the decision makers. Research is good, of course, but personal connections will be key to success.

Washington Post today: “The unemployment rate has surpassed 10 percent for the first time since 1983. Nearly 16 million people can’t find jobs and employers cut a net total of 190,000 jobs last month, the Labor Department says.”

But jobs are out there — and good ones. I just heard the story of the salesman from San Francisco who accepted a job in Grand Rapids, Michigan, with salary boost and sign-on bonus — with cost of living comparison, he will be making double his old salary.

How did he get so “lucky”? It wasn’t luck. He planned, contracted a professional resume writer, conducted extensive research and practiced his interviewing technique. He made it happen.

Too many of these 16 million people are so busy whining and crying that they aren’t working their job search. Okay, maybe I’m being a bit harsh, but the job seeker has got to work hard to find the new opportunity.

Why will they take a chance on a poor resume presentation? They need to stand out from the other 15,999,999 people applying for the same jobs.

Can’t afford it? Ha! You can’t afford not to. If a professionally prepared resume gets you back to work 2 or 3 months sooner, isn’t it worth the investment?

You received help from your local One Stop? Oh dear. Most of those government employees (I didn’t say all) have not been trained as a Certified Professional Resume Writer has. Most professional resume writers participate in continuing education on a monthly (if not weekly) basis to be sure they are able to present you with the greatest impact.

The Washington Post doesn’t report how many people have gotten good jobs in the last few months, but I’d be willing to bet there are many who have. And, I’d also be willing to bet that the majority of them used a professionally developed resume to get those jobs.

If your job search has bogged down, this is the time to put the peddle to the medal and rev up your efforts. Step away from the computer screen and reassess your job search strategy.

- Ask a professional to review your resume and compare it to the types of positions you’re applying for.

- Get out of the house and volunteer, exercise, attend industry and social events.

- Develop some positive, personal affirmations to make you feel good about yourself.

Remember, this recession isn’t your fault and the next great job is just around the corner. You can make it happen. Stay positive.

It just amazes me how unprepared people are these days to start a successful job search. The majority of my clients have conducted no research or self-evaluation despite the fact that it may have been 20 years since they last looked for a job.

Before you get started:

- Find out wherer the jobs are.

- Self assess what skills you can bring to the table.

- Find a certified resume writer with whom you can work collaboratively.

- Identify / hire a good career coach.