How To Keep Job Search Momentum In An Uncertain Market

The most recent jobs report exceeded expectations, but the job market it still being impacted by a series of interrelated factors such as DODGE layoffs, tariffs, federal funding cuts, a decrease in consumer confidence, an erratic stock market, and general economic uncertainty.

It’s this last one that is the real job killer. Economic uncertainty creates paralysis in businesses. They manage cost by stopping activities such as hiring, or they take as much time as they want to do it. Under normal circumstances, lengthy, laborious interview processes are a sign employers have more leverage in the market but the recent freeze is on a different level. Employers aren’t being selective. They’re in survival mode.

On the flip side, fewer people choose to switch jobs, or retire, when they have less confidence in the economy’s future. The normal rate of professionals moving jobs and/or companies has a ripple effect on the job market. Every move is an opportunity for someone else. When nobody moves, everybody’s stuck. When everybody’s stuck, our consumer spending economy grinds to a halt.

What’s left is an increasingly competitive frozen labor market, which is a general nightmare for both sides. The game has changed. Normal rules no longer apply. Your approach must change. You have to march double time on a dual track. That means you must spend double the time working twice as hard to play the short and long games. Here are some recommendations on how to navigate an uncertain labor market.

Double time. When finding a new job gets difficult, it’s easy to be unmotivated because conditions seem beyond your control. That is a natural response and many conditions are beyond your control. However, being proactive may be the most critical and defining differential between job seekers right now. Because of the more challenging circumstances economic uncertainty creates in the labor market, many will slip into complacency or decide to “wait it out,” but you can’t rely on others’ passivity. You must work twice as hard and twice as long anyway.

Dual Track. The dual track is playing both the short game and long game at the same time.

The short game is aggressively administering the tasks regularly associated with a job search – update your resume and LinkedIn profile, post your resume on every job board, research companies and job openings, apply to as many jobs as appropriate, prepare for interviews, and send thank you notes (just to name a few). Even if employers are slowing down you can’t. Be prepared to hurry up and wait, but keep at it 24/7.

The long game is more important. A long-neglected strategic advantage is to leverage your “soft power” by focusing on the people you know, both personally and professionally. Pour your energy into your network (within reason – don’t stalk anybody!). Grease it. Whether it’s references or referrals, anything extra helps. For example, if you can get a resume directly to a hiring manager through a mutual friend instead of submitting it online, your long game makes your short game that much easier. However, it’s not called the long game for nothing. When hiring is in limbo, it may take longer to find a new job. Working your network may not pay immediate dividends, but that one phone call you make now may set something in motion six months from now.

Do Stuff. You can do many things while searching for a job, especially if things are slow going. Even if there isn’t a job opening, don’t be afraid to arrange “informational interviews” or meet-ups with any willing participant. This is long game stuff – nurturing your professional relationships, expanding the strike zone, and trying to move the needle in any way you can. Other “stuff” to consider is joining and being active in professional organizations and attending networking events (for example, alumni networking events) and job fairs. The important thing is to be proactive and willing to explore every pathway available to you.

Philip Roufail contributed to this article.

Scott Singer is the President and Founder of Insider Career Strategies Resume Writing & Career Coaching, a firm dedicated to guiding job seekers and companies through the job search and hiring process. Insider Career Strategies provides resume writing, LinkedIn profile development, career coaching services, and outplacement services. You can email Scott Singer at scott.singer@insidercs.com, or via the website, www.insidercs.com.

Photo credit: iStock Photo – Rudzhan Nagiev