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Alex Wilson
For many people, the start of the holiday season means it’s time to reflect on how wonderful everything is. But, if you’re actively job searching, the start of the holiday season means that less employers are hiring, so you have less opportunities for new employment.
But that doesn’t mean you should be a Grinch (or Scrooge) about your job prospects, and it definitely doesn’t mean that you should pause your job search until the holiday season ends. There are plenty of things you can do during the holidays to jumpstart your job search in 2020. Here are three that you can focus on in the next few weeks.
Though it can vary per the company, holiday parties are typically very cheerful events. It’s a great place to talk to your colleagues like they’re not just your colleagues, and it’s a good time to talk with your boss about what you both may have in common.
Since you’re looking for a new job, you’ll want to go to as many holiday parties as you possibly can. The more people you can meet, the better! Here are a few tips on how to make that happen:
New year, new you? It can look that way on LinkedIn with a little bit of effort! Take one of your vacation days to comb through your social media profiles and make sure they reflect your personal brand. Don’t just focus on your LinkedIn though, focus on whichever profiles are public. You never know where recruiters are looking for more information about you, so update as much as you think is relevant and then some more for good measure).
It’s also a good idea to refresh the individuals you’re using as references. Maybe take them out to coffee as a thank you, or change up your list based on recent work experiences. The longer you job search, the more your strategy will change. That’s totally normal, so embrace it!
Volunteering outside of your nine-to-five job is something you may already be doing, but since organizations scale their efforts during the holidays — it makes sense that you should scale your efforts too. Because volunteer work brings in a wide variety of people, you never know who you’ll be able to network with. Focus on opportunities that rely on a large team of people so you can maximize the number of people you meet.
Another benefit to volunteering with non-profits and other organizations? It gives you the opportunity to get an up-close look at companies in that industry. Say that your dream job is working at non-profit ABC, and non-profit ABC is looking for volunteers to help with their annual gift drive. Signing up will not only give you the chance to give back, but it will also give you the chance to talk to the event organizers and learn more about what they do. If you have a real connection, maybe they’d be open to talking to you about the company further!
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