Chapter 1 It’s a Whole New World for Job-HuntersIf you are trying to understand yourself better, and what you have to offer to the world, this book is for you.
If you are out of work, and want some practical help, this book is for you.
If you are trying to understand how the world, and particularly the world of work, really works these days, this book is for you.
If you’ve been out of work a long time, and think you’re now permanently unemployable, this book is for you.
If you’re on the edge of poverty these days, this book is for you.
If you’ve got some disability, this book is for you.
If you’re trying to figure out a new career or your first career, this book is for you.
If you’re going to college and you can’t figure out what to major in, this book is for you.
If you are trying to figure out what you want to do next, with your life, this book is for you.
If you’re just graduating from college and have to live with your parents ’cause you can’t find any work, this book is for you.
If you’re trying to figure out how to start your own business, this book is for you.
If you’re a returning vet, this book is for you.
If you’re facing retirement, and want to know what to do to support yourself, this book is for you.
A Two-Minute Crash Course on How Much Has Changed in the World of Work Charles Dickens put it well: For some people, a lot of people, this is the best of times. But for others of us, this is the worst of times. The rules of the game have changed. Without notice. And without warning. Especially for the job-hunt, or for those trying to make a career-change.
The job-hunt is behaving differently now, than it used to. Things have changed. Dramatically.
The tipping point was 2008. We all know what happened then: the so-called Great Recession, the worst financial disaster since the Great Depression in 1929. We have recovered, but the landscape has been fundamentally altered, long term. What used to work, doesn’t work anymore. What used to be easy, is now difficult or seemingly impossible. Our lament: Out of work. Made up a resume. Sent it to all the places I’m s’posed to. Went to all the Internet “job-boards” and looked for vacancies in my field. Day after day. Week after week. Month after month. All of this worked the last time I went job-hunting. But now? Strikeout! Nothing!
There are things we can do about this. Believe me, there are. That’s what this book is all about. But before we change our strategies, we must know what we are up against.
1. Employers Changed, Job-Hunters Didn’t
2. The Length of the Average Job-Hunt Has Increased Dramatically
3. The Length of Time the Average Job Lasts Has Decreased Dramatically
4. The Way Jobs Are Done Is Changing Dramatically
5. Job-Hunting Is Increasingly Becoming a Repetitive Activity in the Lives of Many of Us
6. Job-Hunting Has Moved More and More Online
7. Increasingly Job-Hunters and Employers Speak Two Different Languages
The Remedy No, it’s not all bad news. Think of these, instead, as challenges.
Sure, the workplace has changed dramatically since 2008.
And consequently, the job-hunt has changed dramatically since 2008.
Still, there is Hope. It’s not that there are no jobs (see chapter 2). It’s just that the old way you used to hunt for them doesn’t work very well anymore.
In today’s world, he or she who gets hired is not necessarily the one who can do that job best; but, the one who knows the most about how to get hired.
If you learn new advanced job-hunting skills, you can not only survive. You can thrive. The rest of this book is devoted to showing you exactly how to do just that.
Copyright © 2019 by Richard N. Bolles. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
