Leaving behind our student stage and entering the job market can be daunting, but if we prepare well, offers will rain down on us. The end of a stage
The moment has come: we have finished the student stage, we already have our
eTitle and now we find ourselves at the doors of that great unknown that is the job market. It can scare us or we may be very eager to start. Probably, both things cross our minds at some point, but if we don't prepare this intermediate stage well, it may last longer than desired and we may end up adding to those initial feelings high doses of anxiety, frustration, and a sense of worthlessness. We are, therefore, at a crucial moment where we need a good strategy to start off on the right foot in the job market and ensure a good future. Let's see how to do it:
Research opportunities and companies
The first step is to do a good research about what opportunities the job market can offer us based on, on the one hand, our profile and interests, and on the other hand, the demand from companies. It is good to approach this research from different fronts that may include doing an exhaustive search for job offers on the internet, attending job fairs, and networking by contacting professionals in the sector who want to guide us or provide us with new contacts. Once we have identified the companies that interest us the most and the vacancies that are usually available, we need to review the requirements to make sure we meet all of them. Sometimes it is better to take a step back and take a training course that complements our professional profile than to spend months applying for unsuccessful applications.
Create a good personal brand
Personal branding is the way we present ourselves to the job market in general and to our future employers in particular and, like commercial brands, it must be attractive and reliable. To do this, we need to create a good resume that includes only relevant issues for the position we are applying for and that speaks well of us without seeming like we are overselling ourselves. Of course, we should always write a cover letter specifically tailored to the company and the position we are applying for. Personal branding also includes having a professional online presence to share and create relevant content in our sector through blogs, personal websites, and an active and complete profile on LinkedIn.
Improve the necessary skills for the job market
During this time, it would be very beneficial for us to work on the so-called
soft skills that are in high demand today, and at the same time, practice job interviews so that when we start having them, we know what to say and what not to say, how to behave, what to wear, etc. Additionally, it is important to improve our negotiation skills by learning useful techniques so that we can ask for a decent salary, negotiate a number of vacation days, insurance, and other similar issues professionally. By the way, the fact that we do simulated interviews does not mean that we do not have to thoroughly prepare before a real one, but the preparation will then be focused on knowing everything necessary about our potential employers and preparing the relevant questions that we are going to ask.
The problem of experience and how to overcome it
We know that many employers become absurdly demanding about this issue. They look for people in their twenties with a university degree and postgraduate degree, who speak 4 languages, and who also have 15 years of demonstrable work experience in the sector, without family responsibilities and in good health. Someone should explain to them that fairy tales are not real. That being said, experience is a factor that will add many points to our applications, and although not having experience means that we are not hired and therefore cannot gain experience in a kind of senseless infinite cycle, the truth is that there is something we can do: internships in companies, volunteering, participating in research projects or business projects. Another thing that will mitigate our lack of experience and can make us attractive to the job market are the aforementioned courses. We are in a crucial stage where we have to focus all our efforts on creating a good professional profile and we should not be afraid to look at the online training offer and improve in those areas that can make us stand out above the competition. Good luck!
