It's essential to build, grow and cultivate a network.
It’s understandable if you are experiencing a perpetual feeling of doom, as inflation, a recession and the possibility of armed conflicts with Russia and China dominate the headlines. You know that you need to do something, but are stuck in inertia due to all the uncertainty.
However, no one is coming to rescue you. Success is entirely up to you. Starting right now, go after what you want. It's time to get out of your rut and accelerate your career.
1. Start Interviewing To Find Out How Much You Are Worth
One of the best ways to determine your worth is to shop yourself around. Start going on interviews. Even if you’re not ready to accept a new job, you can find out how much they’d pay for a person with your skill sets and experience by meeting with other companies. It could turn out that you’ve been underpaid all these years.
If that’s the case, you have two options: the first is to go to your boss and let them know that you’ve conducted due diligence on what competing companies are offering their employees and the data shows that you’re being underpaid.
If you get pushback or given excuses, directly ask them if they could raise your compensation to be in line with people who do similar work at businesses in the same sector. If the boss doesn’t budge, you know what to do next. The second option is to start a job search immediately. While the job market is still strong, you want to get out there quickly before the window of opportunities closes.
2. Get In Touch With Top Recruiters
Start getting in touch with recruiters. Speak with your co-workers that have switched jobs recently and earned significant premiums for the move. Inquire as to what recruiter they used and ask for an introduction. Recruiters love referrals from applicants that they’ve previously placed. They’ll assume that their friend is also very placeable.
Don’t rely upon only one headhunter. Try to find about three or so recruiters. Make sure that they are knowledgeable about your sector. It will be a disappointing experience if you rely upon a recruiter who doesn’t know or have any connections with human resources and hiring managers in your area of expertise.
Good headhunters will have high-level contacts at the firms you want to work for. They’ll know the corporate culture, salary bands, bonus level paid and if stock options are granted. They most likely have personal relationships with human resources and hiring managers. This makes it easy for them to provide you with feedback, constructive criticism and insights into the people with whom you are meeting with. They’ll also handle salary negotiations. It makes it much less stressful when you don't have to negotiate directly with your new prospective boss.
3. Place Your Network On High Alert
It's essential to build, grow and cultivate a network. This doesn't mean the old-fashioned “go to a dull event with your name tag on your lapel.” You want to create and nurture long-lasting, mutually benefiting relationships with a tight group of people.
Your tribe can be college alums, current and former co-workers, old friends, people you’ve met socially at temple or church and the parents you befriended at school and sporting events.
The network could also include people you forged relationships with on social media platforms. If you are a white-collar professional, you may have made many friends on LinkedIn, even if you may have never seen them in real life.
Your allies on social media can be the best of help. They’ll point you in the right direction to find the appropriate HR person to send your résumé to without having to go through the applicant tracking system. If the person works at a company you would love to work for, they could offer a glowing recommendation and urge them to set up an interview.
4. Change Your Mindset
Start teaching yourself to become more assertive and positive. Stop ruminating over past failures. Focus on the present. Manifest your future by thinking positively. Envision the type of job you want and see yourself working there. Use affirmations to remind yourself that you are smart, talented and possess the ability to get that great job you desire.
Keep in mind the reason why you want to change your work life. It could be that you must get away from a terrible boss. It could be that you entered a profession because of parental and societal pressure and have always felt miserable. Maybe you want more money to provide for a better life for your family.
Now’s the time to end the pain and summon up the mental willpower to go after what you’ve truly always wanted to do with your life. Don’t let anything get in your way.
If you flub an interview, it's okay to feel bummed out temporarily. After nursing the wound to your ego, brush yourself off and get going again. If you try and fail, remember that you at least took the risk. That places you ahead of most people who never tried and have suffered a sad fate of mediocrity, always wondering what they could have been if only they had tried a little harder.
