Don’t Slack Off on Job Search During the Holidays

I’ve written before that the holidays can be a great time to network your way into a new job. Who knows, for instance, who will be scooping up food next to you as you volunteer to help serve dinner at a homeless shelter?

A piece at U.S. News & World Report lists six reasons the holidays are no reason to let up on your job search. Among them:

• Employers are finalizing their 2013 budgets and may be under pressure to get ramped up for new projects in the new year.
• Many employers, especially in government, have use-it-or-lose-it funds.
• Other candidates take a break during the holidays, providing less competition.

And then there are all those parties and events where you’ll be out and about, mingling with all sorts of people who might know someone who knows someone … Just soft-pedal your job search, says writer Marty Nemko, or you’ll come across as too desperate.

In a separate post at Forbes, contributor Erika Andersen warns of three ways you can damage your career during the holidays — and they’re not limited to over-imbibing at the company party.