Five things people wish they did to get a job
It’s the time of year when university graduates are wondering about how to start their careers. Local HR & recruitment firm SevenTwenty offers some tips for these job seekers.
Yeah, you’re snug and cosy at uni, but you can’t get too comfortable because soon enough you’ll have to wean yourself off the warm bosom of institutional education and make your own way in the world.
But before you freak about never getting a job and living at home until you’re thirty, take comfort in the fact that many before you have tried and failed and you can learn from their mistakes.
Here are the five biggest regrets people had when they were job hunting after university.
I waited until I graduated.
The hunt doesn’t start next year; it starts now. While you’re still in school, apply for an internship or five. They’ll get you valuable experience of the work environment before you properly enter it. Think about what actual experience looks like against grades. Out of the dozens of resumes your employer will get, that kind of thing stands out.
I overloaded my resume.
The need to showcase all class work, high school achievements, extra curricular activities and that marketing project that got an A- is understandable, but for the most part it’s clutter. Keep your CV/portfolio relevant, concise and focused. Remember, it’s a tool to open doors, not your one and only shot at getting the job.
I didn’t think much of LinkedIn.
On LinkedIn, you can display all your skills and experience to all potential employers at once. It makes you searchable, findable, professional, and a lot of companies utilise it. Join in the digital age and get yourself a profile. There are plenty of tutorials online on how to do this effectively.
I didn’t change my privacy settings.
Your personal life needs to stay that way. Facebook makes it very easy to see what potential employees are like in their spare time. You don’t want someone seeing that picture of you projectile vomiting at the New Year beach party. That leaves a bad taste in the mouths of employers too. It’s easy to forget about who can see what’s on your profile, so be mindful about what gets posted.
I acted my age.
The transition from university to the working world is one of the fastest you’ll experience. It demands an almost overnight change. You’re going to be in the real world with all the grown-ups; it’s time to act like it. Leave student life behind and step up the way you dress, your manner and your ethic, especially in the interview. People are more comfortable hiring people who (at least look like they) know what they’re doing.
Wise people learn from their mistakes; Smart people learn from the mistakes of others and get it right the first time. Take the advice and go hard. You’ll need to if you’re going to pay that student loan off any time soon.