Setting yourself apart from other candidates

Posted 28 April 2009 - 9:39am by WikiJob

For the various reasons we're all very aware of, getting a job has become incredibly competitive this year. To get hired, you need to have the edge over other candidates, albeit an internship with a great employer, a fantastic extra skill (e.g. speaking Mandarin), or proven drive and determination (e.g. setting up your own successful company whilst at university). Without the edge, it's going to be a serious struggle to get a foot on the ladder of your career of choice.

It's amazing what lengths some people will go to to find employment. Graham Edwards for example, a graphics worked, recently offered to pay £2000 to charity if someone would hire him. The Zookel.com blog recently pointed out:

"For those of you who haven’t heard Graham Edwards is the graphics worker who recently offered to pay £2000 to charity in order to secure a new job. [...] Whilst Graham’s approach to this is clearly in the extreme and definitely not for everyone I admire it for a number of reasons:

It was somewhat philanthropic in that the £2000 went to charity rather than to the future employer.

It was structured smartly with £1000 going to charity up front and £1000 after Graham had passed his probation period.

By being willing to risk his own money (or putting his money where his mouth is so to speak) Graham showed great confidence in his ability to deliver – something almost 100% of employers looks for when hiring.

Perhaps more than anything it was proof that no matter what the prevailing economic environment thinking outside the box, and striving to stand out can help.

I would add that this £2000 offer is also great marketing for Mr. Edwards' personal brand - Zookel talked about him, we're talking about him, no doubt many employers are talking about him. Suddenly he has become a commodity and he's demonstrated his "edge" by providing obvious proof that he is exceptional at marketing himself.

However, we're not suggesting that jobseekers everywhere should devise such outlandish schemes to get employment, although adding some form of creativity to your job search is almost certainly a very good idea. You need to differentiate yourself when applying for jobs, and do this in such a way that engages with recruiters and employers to the extent that they feel the need to call you up and book you in for an interview right now.

In another post also on Zookel (their blog is well worth a read!) they point out five highly perceptive ideas for empowering your jobsearch which are worth taking note of:

Stand out. With increased competition its critical you stand out to potential employers. How? ..you could use Zookel’s your career focus profile and video CV to show why you’re a great candidate, work for free for a week to prove yourself, or use blogs and forums to build your personal brand.

Network, network, network. The people in your network know your skills, strengths and ambitions. So whether it’s your former colleagues on LinkedIn or friends and family on Facebook, why not use this to your advantage?

Look for pockets of positivity. New funding = new jobs, so it’s worth assessing whether you can transfer your skills to a growth sector you haven’t considered before. For example could your skills transfer to the charities sector where the government has recently announced £42.5 mil in new funding?

Update your skills and knowledge. Now’s the time to ensure your skills and knowledge are completely up to date. Whether it’s attending conferences and webinars, or enrolling in longer term University or College courses, the key is: know your area and stay in the loop!

Be prepared. You’ve found the perfect role and got an interview, so don’t blow it by not being prepared. Find out as much about the company as possible. Review official reports (like the ones on Zookel), the company website, and news aggregators like socialmedian. In short, do whatever you can to ensure that you’re ready to shine at the interview.

In our view, the current economic conditions and the Web 2.0 revolution mean the ‘traditional’ job search is dead.

You need to do more than write a CV, send it out, sit back and wait for a call. You have to work as hard to get a job as you will once you’ve got it.

To say the traditional job search is "dead" is perhaps a little bit of an exageration, but dormant it certainly is. For the next 12 - 18 months at the very least job seekers will need to grab every single opportunity they can to benefit themselves and their personal brand and give themselves the edge at interview over their competitiors - the ever growing number of competitors - who are chasing the very limited pool of jobs that are still available.

WikiJob.

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