Suraj Bramania shares five steps for landing a value-driven job.
There are often times people feel the need to switch jobs. If you decide to move forward with the job search as one of the many job seekers, you should focus on what values make you thrive. I am referring to the purpose of your new job and to ensure it gives you intrinsic satisfaction. There may be many reasons for looking for a new job, including and not limited to: layoffs, furloughs, need more money, need a better title, need to work from home, need to take on a new challenge, etc. Just make sure you add “to contribute to a greater purpose that aligns with my personal values” as one of them. This will help take away the feeling of working a dead-end job.
- Use your network to find out how things are on the inside
When looking for work, know that 80% of jobs are not advertised (Smith, 2013). This would mean for you to get an unadvertised job; you would need to be actively involved with the possible places where jobs might open up. Usually in growing startups or companies (it’s always better to look for growing industries). If you are really helping the people in your network, which you should be doing anyway, and you are driven by a clear set of values (Bramania, 2020), it becomes easy to identify who you can relate to and who to check in with for possible roles opening up or they are aware of. If you don’t have a strong network it is important you start networking, it’s never too late to start. There are many articles stating you should not put “Unemployed” in the LinkedIn tagline (Fabiano, 2020) can be seen as one example, recruiters who are looking for a specific role to fill will search for you with the title of the role and some have a bias to not hire people who are not already working somewhere else (Kelly, 2020).
- Ask questions relevant to you and possibly not to others
Everyone comes with a different set of needs and expectations. Often, it is the disconnect in expectations that cause people to also disconnect from each other. Even though the company has a flexible work policy or training policy, if you have not worked with the individual you have been reporting to before, find out if any special circumstances you have will be accommodated. For example, if you need time during your work schedule to take care of personal work and are willing to adjust the hours in the evening or if you need time off for educational goals you set for yourself. Be upfront with what you need to make sure your work and life are balanced for your sanity. Clarify any growth expectations you have. If you are a minority, research how real the word “inclusion” means to them. One simple way is to look up how many minorities of your specific type they have in upper leadership positions.
Key points include:
- Using your network
- Asking relevant questions
- Bringing your A-game
Read the full article, 5 Steps for Landing a Value-Driven Job, on LinkedIn.