How to Improve a Failing Job Search

1. Rethink your strategy

While there may be nothing wrong with your search method, it may be time to rethink your strategy if you haven’t been getting any results. Try using a new approach. For instance, if you’ve been looking for job openings on the internet, try searching the local newspaper, and vice versa. Or use the waiting period in a productive way by doing freelance work – by extending your network and gaining more experience, you’re making yourself more employable and ready for a full-time career.

2. Restructure your resume

Presentation is just as important as content. You may have substantial experience or impressive credentials but if you have poorly written resume, the points will not add up. Create a more targeted resume by aligning your educational background, work-related experience and other qualifications to the job you are after. Then put your “added value” qualifications together in a separate category so that both are highlighted for the employer. Resend general resumes you’ve dispatched through email, personalize them with a cover letter, and send them individually to different employers.

3. Rewrite your cover letter

Are you writing to a person or “to whom it may concern”? A good cover letter is crucial to your application since it allows you to sell your skills to an employer the way a resume cannot. Not only does a cover letter showcase your communication and writing skills, it also shows how you reason and organize your thoughts, as well as the level of dedications you have in your search. Cover letters should be directed at specific individuals and must include their correct designation. You may also take it as an opportunity to show your interest in their company by relating what you have learned about the nature of the position through your research.

4. Reintroduce yourself to the market