By Sharon Woodson-Bryant
What is the biggest obstacle for a person successfully re-entering the job market today?
According to most career counselors, being relevant and up to date in your particular field is the most common hurdle to overcome. With technology moving so fast many people’s skills and knowledge are outdated every couple of years.
What should you do to reconnect yourself?
The first step is to take some brush-up courses prior to beginning the job search. But also do some research into the field or industry you want to enter. Check out any recent legislation or news articles that talk about changes affecting your industry. That way when you sit down for an interview you can communicate that you understand the current work environment and what is expected if you should be hired.
Visit the library or bookstore to do some research. Perhaps a friend or colleague can help. Find out what refresher courses are offered by professional organizations, local colleges, and adult education programs. Brushing up takes time, so it helps to start thinking about your return to the workforce well in advance.
The key to reentering the workforce successfully
The key is having skills that will give you an edge in the marketplace. You may need to brush up on rusty skills or acquire some new ones. For example, being computer literate is very important in many of today’s jobs. If you do not have a background that includes using a computer, you may want to look into taking a computer course.
Begin reviewing your previous work experience and listing the skills you acquired on earlier jobs. Then take a look at what you’ve done during your years away from the job market. Remember that all experience counts, whether you were paid for it or not. Think about the skills you’ve been using at home, in volunteer work or through your hobbies. Then consider how they can be applied to a new job.
Once you’ve listed your experience and skills, think about the type of work you want to be doing. Compare the skills needed for the job with the skills you currently have. There probably will be some gaps. Now is the time to fill in those gaps, even before you begin your job search.
If you’re interested in entering a new field, plan to take some basic coursework. You may need to put in several semesters before you have the skills for even an entry level job. Talk to an instructor or school advisor about the best way to get your skills up to speed quickly. If you need immediate work, you may have to take another type of job while you’re attending classes.
Here are some tips on how to go about getting back into the working world:
1. Define your ideal job
First, it is important to define, in explicit detail, your ideal job. What would you be doing? Where would you be doing it?
2. Be aware of your professional talents and skills
A second step is to define the experience that you can bring to any work setting. Starting tomorrow, catalogue exactly how you spend your time for the next two or three days, from morning to night. List each activity in which you engage. How are you spending your time?
Next to your list draw three columns, place a check in one of the three categories:
(1) I love doing this
(2) I don’t mind doing this
(3) I’d rather not do this
Now, you have a list of things with which you have experience. It’s the old adage, everyone has heard it: “You can’t find a job without experience and you can’t get experience without a job.” So, how do you find a job with little or no experience?
Your list of experience might include organizing tasks, reading, memorizing, researching, web-based research, writing, and interacting with others. Don’t forget to consider your hobbies or other interests. For example, if you are active in your church or community organizations, you may have developed excellent leadership and administrative skills. You might have also acquired skills from your social life. Soft skills such as how to relate to others and getting them to like you are very valuable to some employers, such as those in marketing, sales, conference planning, higher education, etc.
3. Incorporate all of your skills into your resume in a way that enhances them—not diminishes them
Many people differentiate between their volunteer and paid experience; this is a mistake. Employers care most about what you can do for them—not where you acquired the skill or whether you were paid to learn it. Describing experience as a volunteer is a way of minimizing it, especially in a society where some measure self-worth by the size of their paychecks.
Instead, create a heading such as:
“Professional Experience” or “Professional and Academic Experience”
and place your relevant experience below it.
4. Acquire experience through internships and volunteer activities
What if you want a job that requires experience that you do not have? What if you want to be a web designer or a public relations writer but do not have related experience? Here’s where volunteering or interning is an excellent idea. Do your best to seek out an experience in which you can develop useful skills and hopefully, useful contacts. Ideally, volunteer or intern in a place where you would like to be hired. Then, do a great job.
5. Create work samples
What if you are self-taught? If you want to do something in which you have no formal training, create some work samples. Let your portfolio speak for itself.
6. Network Everywhere
In addition to professional organizations, many college graduates are turning to their alma mater’s career office for everything from job listings to counseling sessions. Although college career offices have long offered services to alumni as well as students, many have stepped up their assistance amid the economic slowdown. Even alumni who live hundreds of miles away can log on to their college career center’s website to take advantage of the services offered.
