According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average job search process, from applying to being hired, takes roughly five months. Landing a job, in general, isn’t a walk in the park, let alone a job that you like – it takes time. At the onset of the pandemic in 2020, global unemployment rates increased by 1.1% (33 million more people unemployed relative to 2019) according to this International Labor Organization study.
Despite most things returning to normal in 2022, businesses are still in the process of recuperating their losses over the last two years and this includes not wanting to take on any new employees. This of course varies from industry to industry, but what that means overall is that 2022 is still a relatively harder time to secure a job.
But it isn’t all doom and gloom. Despite 2022 being a difficult time for those looking to secure a job, there are ways to get around the dread and boredom of being unemployed so that the job search process, no matter how long, can still be a productive one.
1. Take a Break!
As counterproductive as this may sound, To get a job, you might not need to ‘try’ to get a job at all.
Instead, take a break!
Lots of people take some time off after graduating from university or after just leaving an old job because they need a breather to regain their sanity before throwing themselves back into a working environment. While there’s absolutely nothing wrong with taking a break – in fact, it’s very necessary – the way we go about ‘taking a break’ needs to be reframed. Most of us have an idea about taking a break which includes catching up with episodes of Game of Thrones, taking a vacation to another country, using the free time to meet friends that they haven’t caught up with in a while or the famous “I’m just chilling”.
These are all great things. However, most people don’t realize that the things we do while we’re on our break can actually provide us with multiple opportunities for personal growth, building connections and learning about the world in general which can end up making us even stronger candidates for whatever job we end up securing in the future – Work on your confidence by getting an exercise routine going, step out of your comfort zone by meeting new people, take up a new hobby, read more and say yes to things that scare you!
All of these contribute to building ourselves up as people, making our resumes more attractive and therefore making us more attractive to recruiters.
2. Apply! Apply! Apply!
Of course, how desperate you are to get a job matters too, not everyone is financially capable of taking a break for too long. With costs of living constantly increasing, getting a job for some is a necessity and the luxury of taking a break may not be one everyone can afford.
Getting a job, though not all the time, is a quantity over quality process to the extent that it is much better to apply to a variety of businesses instead of putting all your eggs in one basket so-to-speak. Whether you’re taking a break after graduating or if you’re ready to start work. While searching for jobs, a lot of people make their judgements too soon about whether or not a job, based on its description, is suitable for them or not – this includes feeling as though you don’t have the same amount of experience as listed on the job description or perhaps not fully understanding the required tasks of the job.
Fret not! This doesn’t mean you can’t get hired and learn new things on the job. Understandably there is a lot of anxiety around whether or not one is good enough/suitable for a job. This anxiety makes us very selective over the job application process out of fear of rejection. Companies like TalentX make the application process easier for those looking for a job by essentially automating it.
Sign up for FREE, upload your resume, answer a few questions and you will automatically be added to TalentX’s talent pool where PAM (TalentX’s artificial intelligence program) will try to match you up with potential employers based on the information you have provided. It’s that easy!
Setting a deadline for when you should secure a job shouldn’t be the strategy you take, instead, focus on building yourself up as a person while still consistently applying to various places without thinking too much about whether or not the job suits you. Job applications/securing a job is similar in many ways to be successful in general – as DJ/Producer KSHMR once said: “It’s about throwing sh*t at a wall and seeing what sticks”.
3. Look at COVID as an opportunity
The pandemic has made tech-related jobs more desirable. Since COVID, many people have, in many ways, ‘shifted online’. This means that the availability of content online has grown – including more opportunities to make money! Jobs such as crypto day-trading, data analysis and web development are becoming increasingly popular mainly because these are jobs that people are able to do from home.
The pandemic has forced many physical businesses to close, laying off their employees and forcing them to look at other income opportunities that are both physically safe but also lucrative. With the influx of money-making opportunities online comes an increase in educational content about those money-making opportunities! This essentially means that you can teach yourself how to make money.
COVID has also forced a lot of businesses to go remote and so more and more people are now able to work from the comfort of their own homes. Assuming you are able to land one of these remote jobs, the time saved on commuting to work could mean that you can squeeze in other personal growth-related activities into your day!
4. Upskill
While regaining your sanity after graduating or ending an old job is important, one more thing you could add to your list of things to do while taking a break is to expand your skill set to boost your chances of getting hired when you do decide to start applying for jobs. Some of the ways to do this include:
• Taking advantage of free courses:
This CNBC article lists 10 of the most in-demand skills that recruiters look out for when hiring. Not surprisingly, most of these skills are tech-related and can be easily picked up through the plethora of FREE courses – many of which are created by top universities – that can be found online. This page lists some of the top websites you can use to find online courses for everything ranging from beginner guitar lessons to courses about cryptocurrency & blockchain technology.
Mentorship programmes:
Mentorship programmes are a great opportunity to upskill because who better to learn from than someone who is already in the industry? From less than $2SGD a session, Futurelab lets you schedule a mentorship session with an industry mentor of your choice to get valuable advice and broaden your knowledge about whatever industry you are interested in. Futurelab also grants you free credit (worth one session) just by signing up and completing your profile!
Internship programmes:
Many companies, especially post-COVID are hesitant about hiring new employees simply because they can’t financially afford it. This recuperation period, however, does mean that many companies still need an extra hand in getting work done especially after the mass layoffs that occurred when COVID was at its peak. This means that many companies will be willing to take on interns. Internships, like mentorship programmes, are a great way for you to learn about an industry, build up your skillset and make connections – which are arguably more valuable in the long run than having a good salary. Websites like Indeed allow you to search for and apply to internship programmes. Google’s job search platform also allows you to find internship programmes to apply to from a simple google search!
Conclusion
Getting a job in 2022 is not an easy task given the huge negative financial impact it’s had on the world. Being a fresh graduate with little to no working experience in a field just makes the task even harder. But this doesn’t mean that all hope is lost and you should give up! With a little short-term financial planning, incorporate activities into your day that contribute to your personal growth, constantly be on the lookout for job openings that suit you, learn more about opportunities to make money online and take advantage of free courses, mentorship programs and internships.
All of these steps are great elements to add to your personal growth journey which would undoubtedly contribute to increasing your chances of landing that dream job. Focus on the long game of building yourself up as a person instead of focusing on getting a job that pays well and you’ll find that you will be much happier once you do eventually get hired.