Coaches Corner

Many job seekers slow down during the holidays, assuming employers aren’t hiring. However, studies show that more than one-third of employers plan to hire during the fourth quarter, including the holiday season. This is a prime opportunity to get ahead of the competition. Stay focused, maintain a consistent schedule, and set yourself up for a strong start to the new year.

Here are three tips to keep your job search momentum going over the holidays:

1. Network Actively
While others take a break, double down on networking. Use holiday events, parties, and casual gatherings as opportunities to talk about your job search. Share your goals with friends, family, and new connections—you never know who might have a helpful lead or advice.

2. Perfect Your Elevator Pitch
Refine a brief, compelling way to explain your background and career goals. Highlight your strengths in a way that’s concise and engaging, so you’re ready to share it whenever the opportunity arises.

3. Practice Your Interview Skills
Take time to strengthen your interview game. Whether it’s practicing with a friend or reviewing common questions on your own, focus on crafting a confident introduction and using techniques like STAR (Situation, Task, Action, Result) to clearly demonstrate your skills and accomplishments.

The holiday season doesn’t have to be a pause in your job search—it can be a launchpad for new opportunities. Stay proactive, stay motivated, and you might just find the perfect role waiting for you.

If you are looking at ways to help transitioning employees during this season, please don't hesitate to reach out and schedule some time with us!

Interviews can be stressful – but if you prepare well, they can be enjoyable. And when you prepare thoroughly for an interview, you'll show the hiring manager that you'll go the extra mile if you're hired for the job.

Use these three tips to make the best impression at your next job interview:

‍Research the employer – Learn why the company may be a good fit for you before the interview. Use the employer's website and internet searches to learn about the company, its history, locations, products and services. Look for recent company press releases and news articles.‍

Research your interviewer – Interviewers are more likely to hire someone who has something in common with them. Learn everything you can about the interviewer including their background, interests and mutual connections you may have. Use the power of LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and other networks to ask people in your network if they have any connections to the interviewer.

‍Practice your opening and close – People tend to remember the beginning and the end of a conversation. Practice what you’ll say at the start and end of your interview – in the mirror, with a friend or with a job coach – so those parts will go smoothly.

Employers make half of their hires through their network. The top networking site is LinkedIn, with over 400 million users. It allows job seekers and employers to quickly research each other and find common network connections who can speak in depth about a job seeker’s character - something a resume can’t do.  Fortunately, most of LinkedIn’s key features are free.

Follow these important steps on LinkedIn to open the door to jobs already in your network.

Optimize your profile – To get, on average, 21 times more profile views, detail your experience with keywords, skills and accomplishments that highlight your capabilities; write a sharp, short headline to reflect your brand and upload a professional-looking photo.

‍Activate your current network– Upload your email or other contact list to quickly expand your network with friends who are already on LinkedIn.

‍Find jobs and target employers– Search for openings in your area in the “Jobs” feature and find connections who can give you a warm introduction or go directly to the company LinkedIn profile and enter the target employer’s name in the search bar.‍

Following up with hiring managers– Stay connected on LinkedIn once you have had an interview or contacted someone to network for a job. Consider inviting the hiring manager to connect and/or comment on one of their LinkedIn postings. It will show your interest and keep your name in front of them without being annoying.

Did you know you can search for job postings from popular sites like Monster and CareerBuilder and have them sent to your email box automatically through Indeed.com? Indeed is the largest job board in the world, and fortunately, it's free to use.

To find jobs and set up your automated job search:

• Search– Go to indeed.com and enter your desired job and location in the "What" and "Where" fields fields. Click "Find Jobs," then narrow the list, if you like, using the filters on the results screen.
• Automate– Simply enter your email address in the "Get new jobs for this search by email" field to have new job postings sent to you for that search on a daily or weekly basis.
• Repeat – You can set up searches for as many jobs and locations as you like and cancel a search at anytime. You can also enter your resume into Indeed to let employers find you.

Rather than spending all your time searching through job postings on various sites, use a job board aggregator and spend more time networking.

Most job seekers aren't sure how to follow up after an interview or submitting an application - not knowing when an employer will call or when to follow up if they don't. Don't miss this important step. Employers often watch how you work on your job search to assess how you’ll work in the job.

Follow these keys to effective follow up:

‍Follow the "Rule of Three's"– In the first 5 to 7 days after submitting your resume or application, follow up by phone or in person and express interest in the position. If you don’t receive a response within two weeks, try again by email or send a message through LinkedIn. If you still haven’t received a response after a month, consider sending a handwritten note. Continue following up every few weeks to touch base on the progress of the search until the position is filled.

‍Make the extra effort– Always follow up with a thank you note within 24 hours of any interview. Send an email as well as a handwritten thank you card. The extra effort and the sincere appreciation for their time will speak volumes as to what kind of employee and coworker you will be. Be sure to also let them know you are interested in going to the next step!

‍Be persistent– Don't get discouraged. If you don't receive a response, don't stop making phone calls. Even if it's uncomfortable, remember to be confident. If you've done your research, the employers you've picked will be lucky to have you. Even if they've chosen another applicant, you may get a job lead for another position with the company by demonstrating your interest and professionalism.

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Job seekers often slow down their job search during the holidays and assume employers are not hiring or interviewing. But, according to studies, over one-third of employers expect to add employees during the fourth quarter including over the holiday season.

Here are three reasons why ramping up your job search over the holidays will give you an advantage:

• You'll have less competition– While other job seekers are taking time off of their job hunt, you should increase your activity. It will demonstrate your commitment to your future employer, and make it easier on the hiring manager.
• Hiring managers are more available – Although holidays can be busy, hiring managers’ calendars are often unscheduled, allowing them time to attend holiday gatherings, clean out files and plan for the new year. Reach out by phone or preferably in person to follow up on your application or schedule an informational interview.
• You'll gain momentum for the New Year – While other candidates will just be trying to rekindle their job search, yours will remain strong and your relationships with employers will be primed for start of the year hiring decisions.

The NextJob Team

‍P.S. Consider seasonal work or volunteer opportunities during the holidays while you continue your job search. You’ll expand your network and gain new experience, knowledge and connections that may lead to a full-time opportunity.

‍Helping you land your next great job...faster.‍

Employers can subscribe to our Reemployment Industry Insights mailing list and job seekers can subscribe to our Job Search News & Tips mailing list.

At NextJob we are so thankful for the privilege of working alongside our customers and their employees, helping them back to work. Customers of NextJob, have also helped us with our charitable Job for Job program: for every job search package our customers purchase, we donate a matching gift of our proprietary online job search skills system to someone in need.To reach those in need, we partner with organizations serving people who are homeless, in poverty, disadvantaged, disabled veterans, victims of domestic violence or chronically underemployed. Our mission is to help our partner organizations give a hand up into employment for our neighbors in need.

This holiday season, we thought we’d share two stories from Emergency Care Help Organization, our NextJob partner in Central Florida. ECHO serves residents in crisis with food and clothing and offers access to life-stabilizing programs and resources including our Job for Job reemployment program.

ECHO Director Eleanor Saunders recounted one of the more inspirational stories.  “Mark was homeless.  He walked four miles to class each week.  We received a donated bike and gave it to Mark.  He was faithful.  After a few months, he landed a job in HVAC with a local company.  He has since passed his 90 day probation period with flying colors!”

Another ECHO job seeker offered her story as well:‍

“I first came to ECHO for GED classes. Then I got more information on how to help my family by me attending Job for Job classes, where I was able to build my resume, practice for interviews and most important they gave me a confidence that wa

s lost somewhere down the line of my life or maybe never really had.

I got to practice different things and started to look at myself in the future with a real JOB and capable of being able to do something in the long term, not just an immediate need to pay a bill right now.  I got the feeling of long term success and this was something I never experienced before…I did my interview and got hired with great benefits and most important, now I have the opportunity to help others and give someone else this boost that I much needed in my life.”

- Marlen, Job for Job Client

‍As we head into a season of giving, we’re thankful for the privilege of partnering with our customers to make a real difference in people's lives and wish you all a very happy holiday season!

John Courtney, President & CEO

P.S.As always, we welcome suggestions of nonprofits that could use our resources to make a difference in the lives of those they serve and we welcome support in spreading the word. Simply contact Dale at dalef@nextjob.com to share your suggestions.

Employers can subscribe to our Reemployment Industry Insights mailing list and job seekers can subscribe to our Job Search News & Tips mailing list.

Many people go through an interview and don’t ask a single question. They are scared or assume that the hiring manager is the only one allowed to lead the conversation. In reality, interviewers appreciate job seekers who know what they are looking for and demonstrate their interest in the position. When you ask great questions you’ll also uncover the priorities and responsibilities of the job so you can effectively sell your experiences and accomplishments back to the employer.

Three key questions you should consider asking in an interview are:

1. Company Challenges – Ask: “What are some of the key challenges the company is facing right now?” You’ll demonstrate that you’re thinking not only about your own position, but also the well-being of the company. Employers love team players who think about the bigger picture.
2. Keys to Success – Ask: “What abilities are the most important for success in this position?” This question will show that you are focused on succeeding and you’ll be able prioritize your answers based on what the interviewer tell you is important.
3. Personal Approach – Ask: “What do you most enjoy about your work here?” You’ll show that you have a genuine interest in your interviewer as well as an interest in enjoying your work. This will demonstrate that the job is not just a paycheck for you.

Asking the right questions gives the interviewer a chance to talk while educating you on what you need to know about the job.‍

Helping you land your next great job...faster.‍

Employers can subscribe to our Reemployment Industry Insights mailing list and job seekers can subscribe to our Job Search News & Tips mailing list.

Networking can be hard, but one great trick you can use is the "informational interview." Simply find someone who works in a company or a job you're targeting and ask for a conversation to learn more. To save them time and make it casual, ask them to meet for coffee or lunch. You'll normally learn more about a target company or occupation over lunch than you might in months of researching, and you'll often discover job openings and gain connections you'd otherwise miss.

Use these three tips to start tapping the power of an informational interview:

• Use your employer target list – Look for hiring managers or people in your network who work at a target employer by searching for the company on LinkedIn or Google. Narrow your search to your local area, so you can meet in person. If you don't find anyone that way, ask the receptionist to connect you to someone from the department you're targeting.
• Make contact – Be personal and sincere -- do not use the default generic messaging options if you are using LinkedIn. Simply ask this question: "I'm really interested in your work and your company. Would you be willing to have a conversation with me over lunch or coffee about your job and how you started in your career?"
• Ask great questions – Most people are flattered that you would want to know about their life and even more flattered that you might want to be like them. When you meet, ask personal questions such as, why they chose their job, what they like about their current company, and recommendations they have for you to gain experience in their field. Always close by asking if they are aware of any opportunities in their current company or anyone else they'd recommend you talk with next.

Use these tips and you may just find that you’ve taken a big step toward finding your next job.

Employers can subscribe to our Reemployment Industry Insights mailing list and job seekers can subscribe to our Job Search News & Tips mailing list.

Research on landing a job faster

‍Despite over five million open jobs, the average job seeker remains unemployed over six months and over one third of unemployment insurance claimants are still exhausting all of their benefits, without landing a job.

This is costly for employers and job seekers alike. The average claim against an employer’s unemployment account is over $5,000 and, for job seekers who are parents, a six-month or greater spell of unemployment nearly tripled the rate of poverty.

Read this month’s Reemployment Insight, “The Six Month Question” to learn more about the 5 factors you should ensure are included in your reemployment support model.