Consider this hypothetical situation: You're weary of your day-to-day situation, so you’ve decided it’s time to find a new career opportunity. You begin reviewing job boards, company websites and openings, and you begin to create your new resume. You’re excited about the roles you’ve found, and you realize there are so many things you can do that you’ve never considered.
Each opportunity brings with it exciting responsibilities and a change of pace. But, as you're writing your resume, you struggle to link your experience to the roles in which you’re interested. It seems impossible to create a professional brand that encompasses all of the concepts and requirements of each role.
As a career coach and certified resume writer, I've seen situations like this in the past. But contrary to popular belief, there are a few ways you can aim for your dream job while setting appropriate goals during your job search:
Find your mistake.
The above is a common situation we see each day at our company. To better understand the cause, we decided to dig into the problem. We interviewed several of our community members to better understand how and why their job search was stalled. And, we discovered one key element: a lack of focus.
Instead of identifying their key strengths and pursuing roles that fit their knowledge base and career level, these individuals were focusing on career opportunities that were outside their skill set. They were either gearing their job search toward roles that required skills they had little or no knowledge in, or they were pursuing roles two to three levels above their current career path.
When asked to provide evidence that they could actually do the work needed in these positions or be an effective leader at a level well above their current job, they simply couldn’t.
Establish (realistic) goals.
Although you shouldn't aim low in your job search, it is important that you set realistic, attainable goals for yourself. In my experience, setting your sights on the next step in your career is smart, but setting it at levels above your current role might not be the best decision. So, before you launch your next job search and find yourself spinning your wheels, run through this checklist:
• Are your skills aligned with the opportunity? Do you clearly meet at least three of the key components of the role?
• Do you have confidence in your ability to highlight successes you’ve had in your career that would provide value to the opportunity to which you’re applying?
• Can you articulate exactly how your skills align with the needs of the opportunity? Are you comfortable with the industry, market demands and specific skill set needed?
• If the role is outside your core strengths, is it tangentially connected? If so, how closely do your skills match?
How you answer the above questions will help you understand how closely you align with the needs of the opportunity. For example, if you find that you can not clearly articulate how your skills align to the role or explain what the current market conditions are for the industry the role is in, you're more than likely reaching above your current level of skill. I believe you should be able to easily answer these questions; it shouldn't be a stretch for you to confidently explain your abilities, strengths and key measurables as it relates to the needs of the opportunity. Therefore, if you find it difficult to answer all of these questions, consider looking at opportunities a level below your current search target.
On the flip side, if you're able to easily answer the above questions, you're definitely a match for the opportunity you're pursuing.
In my experience, taking a pragmatic approach to your job search can help yield results much faster. Companies look to hire individuals who can hit the ground running and provide value, so look for roles that allow you to shine as a top performer, not struggle to fit.
If at the end of the day if you’re determined to transition to a new industry or field, do it. But, take time to research the best path to make a career transition and be prepared for a much more difficult job search and perhaps even a step back in pay.
