As a former hiring manager in IT, I look for people who do more
and go beyond just the minimum. During this unprecedented
time in our lives, one of the questions I would definitely ask in order to
distinguish between candidates is “what have you been doing since mid-March?”
Of course everyone’s circumstances are different so there is
not one answer, for instance some people have taken on the role of teacher at
home. What a hiring manager will be looking for in your answer is what you have
done in the weeks or months to maintain and grow your skills.
To be competitive, you need to have a good answer to this
question. Even if all you have done to date is binge watch shows, gain the
Covid-19 pounds by overeating, and sleeping in, it is not too late to develop a
truthful answer that will help you stand out. Here are several no-cost ideas.
1)
Sign up for and “attend” free webinars on key
topics in your industry or for your profession. To find these events, search
the internet for the name of your industry or job title and the word
“association”. Many groups which normally meet in person are now holding
webinars.
2)
Search the internet for “free training” on the
topic you want or need to learn.
If the training requires you to
have certain software, also search “free trial copy” and the name of the
software. Many companies will give you a trial copy of the software for 30
days. (Hint: do not download the software until you are ready to use it because
the countdown begins when you download it, not when you first use it).
Then to structure that training, go
to sites where they charge for training on that topic and copy their syllabus
into a list so you know what topics to learn and in what order.
3)
Read the articles posted in the LinkedIn groups
for your industry. To find these groups, click in the search bar of LinkedIn
and select the Groups option that appears below the search bar.
Then in the search bar type in the
name of your industry. Once you find groups of interest, request to join. It
may take a while for your request to get approved because it is normally
volunteers who monitor and process requests.
Once you are approved, click on the
Work icon (the one that looks like a Rubik’s cube), select Groups, then select
the group and read the articles.
This is the time to get ready for the job search and that
includes preparing for your answers to interview questions. I refer to myself as the “queen of analogies”
and my Covid-19 analogy is this: if you want the toilet paper, you need to be
in the front of the line before they run out (i.e. before the few good jobs get
filled).
Judi Adams
RightChanges.biz
The Affordable and Successful Job Search Coach
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