How to Land A Job in Really Tough Times: Part 1: Articulate your value as results, not as activities or a bunch of qualifications. (No one cares. Really.)

Elsewhere I’ve offered advice for executives and business owners who want to attract top talent on how to write a help-wanted ad that attracts talent and drives everyone else away.

In the next series of posts, I’ll share the converse:  How to be the last man (or woman) standing so they point and say “You. Can you really do that for us if we hire you?”

“Why yes, of course. But you better act fast…”

There are three aspects to landing a job in tough times when jobs are scarce:

1. Articulate what you do as results, not as activities.

2. Find a company where they need someone who can create the results you can create.

3. Locate, meet and listen to the boss whose life you can brighten.

Step 1: Articulate what you do as results, not as activities.

This exercise should be your very first step in your hunt for a job. Be able to articulate clearly and with confidence the results you can produce for the right, deserving company.

This sounds easy, but people get stuck here all the time. They talk about their qualifications rather than about the results they can achieve.

If you are a programmer, don’t talk about your credentials and years of experience.  Talk about how you can write code that the end user perceives as nothing short of software poetry.

If you are a receptionist, your value might be your ability to make every caller, on the phone or in person, feel welcome and valued.

If you are a marketer, your value might be your ability to get prospects talking so they share information they normally keep to themselves.  Any company lucky enough to hire you will have information and understanding of details the competition just guesses about.  Of course this provides measurable advantages when it comes to decisions about product design and marketing.

If you are looking for a management position, reflect on your ability to reduce time and energy wasted by your subordinates. Reflect on how you infect others with your passion and average people find themselves producing extraordinary results.

If you are a chef, looking for a job at a restaurant, it isn’t just about cooking good food. It’s about running an efficient kitchen. What is important to the restaurant owner or hotel manager about how a chef runs the kitchen?

In short: be able to able to articulate what will be objectively and observably different once you are in the picture.

Exercise:

• What results have I created in previous positions?  What results can I create in my next position?
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• List everything that comes to mind.  What you do is multi-faceted so be sure to identify your value from several directions.
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• Check you answers:  Have you written about results, OUTCOMES, or activities?
  

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In Part 2, we’ll look at ways to find companies who can use and will appreciate your value and how to make your initial approach.

Finally, in Part 3, you’ll get fresh ideas for making people want you on their payroll.

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