5 Tips to Boost Your Confidence and Get Yourself Hired

By Waller Jamison

Losing your job is tough at any time, but especially when the world is in the grip of a major recession. Are you sending out application after application but getting no results? If so, you can improve your prospects very easily by following these tips.

Tip #1
Make a list of your transferable skills. Most of us take our skills for granted because we use them all the time and don't consider them to be anything special. But you will have a number of skills which are very valuable in the job market and you need to be able to identify them. Once you know what they are, you can highlight them on your job applications and this will greatly improve your chances.

Don't know what skills you have? You can find out by going through all your old job descriptions, if you have them and writing down everything that you have done at work in the past which could be of value to an employer. If you don't have any job descriptions, look up similar job advertisements online and you'll come up with a good list. Or talk to friends and people you have worked with in the past.

Once you understand just how many skills you have, you'll feel a lot better about yourself and your ability to make a worthwhile contribution in the workplace.

Tip #2
Look for jobs where your skills are in demand. This could mean doing something slightly different from what you were doing before or doing the same thing but within a different industry. So be aware that many of your skills are transferable and widen the net when your are searching for jobs.

Tip #3
Don't just create one résumé and send it out to dozens of employers. Target your résumé or CV and your cover letter for every job you apply for. This isn't as difficult as it sounds. You can start with a generic résumé or CV aimed at the type of work you are looking for and then you can alter each one slightly to suit the needs of the individual employer. Do the same thing with your cover letter.

This might sound like more work, but you are likely to get a job much more quickly using this approach. So in the long run, it will mean a lot less work.

Tip #4
Be sure to research the companies you apply to, both before you send in the application and after you have been asked to attend an interview. Everyone who is interviewed will be capable of doing the job and you need to be sure you stand out. So do your homework and you'll make a good impression.

Tip #5
Keep building a network of people who can help you find the job you want. You won't always know if someone has a good contact or a friend in the business. So put the word out!

If you have been laid off, creating a really good résumé, identifying your transferable skills and doing your background research will help you get yourself hired in record time.

Check out this video if you want to know the 4 steps you can take right now to recession proof your career?

For more tips on how to find a new job go to: http://www.coolercareers.com