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    Learn to Find Your Dream Job Without Using Crazy Schemes

    You can Google “job search tips” and find a ton of information from just about every online entity about  how to go about finding a new job.

    The search includes “10 Job-Hunting Tips From People Who Found Jobs,” from Forbes. And U.S. News and World Report offers “10 Emerging Job Search Trends, Tips and Tactics.”  These lists include tips such as “reaching out to companies you admire,” and using Twitter to gain information about companies and open positions. Some lists may even tell stories about crazy schemes people have used to get the attention of the hiring manager. And one woman on Forbes even sent her resume in because she “thought the woman who had the equivalent of her job might retire.” Yes, sometimes these actions lead to success. But often, it depends on the industry and just who is making the hiring decisions.

    What a successful job search boils down to for many of us, though, is knowing what you want out of a career and then targeting positions that fit. Author and career coach, Lisa Quast, wrote a book to help job seekers do just that. “Secrets of a Hiring Manager Turned Career Coach: A Foolproof Guide to Getting the Job You Want Every Time” is a manual that the majority of those searching for a job can easily follow. It distills the basics of the job hunt down in an easily understandable way. And it doesn’t hurt that Quast claims to have had a 100 percent success rate in placing her clients in the jobs they want.

    Quast’s book covers topics such as:

    • Finding your passion
    • How to evaluate jobs and your own skills
    • Creating the necessary documents—resumes, portfolios, etc.
    • Developing your own personal brand
    • Scoring an interview
    • Acing the interview

    In our IT Downloads area, you will find an excerpt from the book, which includes chapters 1 and 2, covering taking a personal assessment about yourself, the kind of job you want and why you want to leave your current job.

    Job Interview

    When discussing the topic of leaving a position, Quast recommends making a list of reasons why you want to leave. She then helps the reader understand that some reasons can be dealt with without the need to abandon the job:

    Really think deeply about the underlying cause of each issue. If you feel like your manager isn’t supportive of your career development, you might at first put this into the ‘Issues within my manager’s ability to control’ and then think to yourself, ‘Yeah, right. Like he/she even cares one way or another about my career.’ But what if you looked at the situation from a different angle? Have you taken the time to define your career aspirations? Have you created a career development …  that includes actions you believe are needed to achieve your goals? Have you shared this information with your manager and asked for his or her help and support? What might seem like a reason to look for a different job could turn out to be something within your ability to control and change.

    Quast’s book is an excellent guide for most any job seeker. It can help those just out of school who are looking for their first job and it also speaks to those who have been in the workforce and may be looking for change or more responsibility.

    Kim Mays has been editing and writing about IT since 1999. She currently tackles the topics of small to midsize business technology and introducing new tools for IT. Follow Kim on Google+ or Twitter.

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