Job Seekers:  Know Thyself 
By Barbara Moses

It's tough out there - hiring freezes, cutbacks, and restructuring.

But there is also great work to be found.

Finding your great work will require perseverance, creativity, and sometimes thinking unconventionally.  Take a career activist stance and follow these 15 strategies to uncover and secure your great work.

Know yourself:  The most significant factor in securing great work is the ability to articulate interests, skills, unique talents, values, work preferences, and accomplishments.  This is the foundation not only for setting meaningful career goals, but also for writing marketing materials and presenting yourself effectively in networking and interviews.

I've seen many people who are talented and accomplished, but who can't put economical and compelling words around what they have to offer. 

Think broadly:  Disconnect your identity from jobs and job titles.  Think of yourself as the owner of a self-managed portfolio of skills, talents, and abilities to solve certain classes of problems and to thrive under certain environmental and cultural conditions.  Rather than thinking in terms of jobs or job titles, focus on what roles you want to play, whether as a team builder, problem solver, communicator, facilitator, or leader.

The broader your self-definition, the more options are available to you.

Aim high:   Don't be put off by stated job requirements.  Recruiters often start their search by asking for the moon and stars, then modify expectations in light of the available talent pool.

Think like a recruiter:  This is my golden rule for an effective job search, whether you are writing a cover letter to your resume, preparing for an interview, or pitching someone for work.  Imagine you were recruiting for the targeted opportunity:  What would you be looking for in terms of technical and non-technical skills, values, and work style?  Spin your work experiences and accomplishments in works that speak directly to the employer's needs.

Network intelligently:  Cherry, a 35-year-old job seeker, recently told me:  "I've been so busy networking.  I've had lunch, drinks, or played tennis with over 100 influential people, but I still haven't found a job."

Networking is one of the most powerful career management strategies, but it is also the one that poses the greatest challenges.

It does not mean:

Glibly handing out your business card to everyone you meet with a robotically over-rehearsed sound-byte that has every meaningless buzz word in the language.

Daily networking lunches (people are too busy, and the social environment often changes the focus).

Interacting only with senior people, unless you are looking for work at that level (senior people are often too removed from where the work is actually done).

Asking people for a one-hour meeting to discuss opportunities in their field, going through a list of canned questions from a job-search book, the answers to which you don't care about, and concluding with a request for the names of 10 people you can talk to.

If you are looking to make a career change and are conducting information interviews, ask targeted questions related to your own particular needs and interests.  Instead of thinking about it as an interview, think of it as a conversation.  Make it easy and enjoyable for people to meet with you, with reasonable time commitment (I usually recommend asking for about 15 minutes - if the person you are meeting with is enjoying herself or himself, they will often give you longer).

Consider a phone conversation rather than a face-to-face meeting to make it easier for your contact to agree to "meet" with you.

Don't forget to send a thank-you note.  Keep your network appraised of your progress, especially once you have landed.

Use the "eye and ears" approach:  Most people are sympathetic to work searchers.  One woman sent out an e-mail to 100 people in her network and friends of people in her network, asking them to be her eyes and ears in identifying opportunities.  She generated 33 leads in a week.

Become an oral storyteller:  In your networking, you will be gathering important insider information on industry trends, corporate strategies, and product innovations that will often be of interest to the people you network with and to the recruiter.  Use every interaction as an opportunity to pick up a piece of information and pass on a piece of information.

Pitch an employer:  I secured every job I ever held in this way.  Find a great employer.  Show you understand their needs and why you are an irresistible value proposition.

Think culture and industry sector:   Sure, the work has to be interesting, but the most important factor in finding great work is your fit with the culture—whether it be freewheeling and entrepreneurial, consensus-building or team-oriented.

Target your search:  You know what you want and need in a job and work environment.  Conduct your search and focus on organizations, industry sectors, and roles that speak to your skills and values.

Audition the employer:  What do you see when you go for an interview?  What does the art say?  How are people dressed?  Are people smiling?  If you pay attention to all the cues, you will learn a lot about the culture.

Show your personality:  Communicate enthusiasm for your work.  Charm and manners speak volumes.  Employers are hiring a human being who they think will be a good fit for their organization, as well as someone whose accomplishments indicate their ability to get desired results.  "Fit" is basically an euphemism for "I can imagine sharing a limo to the airport with this person.  And I can imagine working on an intense project team with them."  Be natural and express your authentic self.  Prepare for the interview, but don't over-rehearse.

Don't be embarrassed about job loss:  It is simply a feature of the contemporary landscape and there is a fairly good chance your interviewer has had a similar experience.  If you were fired, show what you learned from the experience and how your coping strategies speak to your emotional resilience.

Avoid the cliché of the over-heartily expressed, "This is the best opportunity of my life."  It may well turn out to be, but unless you got a huge severance or hated your previous job, chances are you won't feel that until you get that new great work.  On a related note, take the acid test before you go into the market.  If you can't talk about your job loss without rancor and bitterness, wait.

Conduct an audition:  It is easier to say yes to a date than to a marriage proposal, and it's easier for an employer to say yes to contract work than a full-time permanent job.  Consider contract work as a foot in the door and an opportunity to check out the work and culture.  If you are early in your career, or making a career change, consider doing a three-month internship to show your wares.

Know the tradeoffs:  Make age, and career- and life-stage appropriate decisions.  If you are starting out, you may need to take a stepping stone job to get great resume-enhancing experience.  If you are well into your career, issues related to work-life balance and supporting your most important values will be critical.

Be prepared for delays:   Follow up in a few weeks if you haven't heard back from the recruiter—and every couple of weeks after that.  (If you call more often they may feel you are pestering them.)  Things often don't unfold the way they are supposed to.  Expect unanticipated roadblocks and changes in the hiring process.  Do not be disheartened if a search is put on hold—sudden hiring freezes are a common occurrence in the current economy.

Looking for work can be challenging.  Don't get discouraged—there is great work out there.  Think of this as an opportunity to strut your stuff, meet new people, test yourself in new environments, and learn about other organizations.

Good luck and good hunting.

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Barbara Moses, Ph.D., is an organizational career management consultant, speaker, and author of What Next:  The Complete Guide to Taking Control of Your Working Life.