If you’re looking for a new job or a change of direction in your professional life, be sure to consider these factors:

1. Self-esteem: it’s important to maintain the right level of self-esteem and a good inner perception of your professional worth.

2. Personal self-knowledge: perform an analysis of your strengths and weaknesses. What are you best at? And worst at? Look for vacancies associated with your strengths.

3. Assessment of the job: no matter how much or how little you have, highlight your experience.

4. Reasons for being unemployed: if you become unemployed, analyse the reasons that led to that situation. Learn from past experience in order to enhance steps to improve in the future.

5. Personal and professional image: look after your image.

6. Professional suitability: if you have a job interview coming up soon, try and match your strengths to the job requirements: skills, knowledge, experience, etc.

7. Jobsearch skills: enhance your skills. Contact your friends, attend forums, take part and continue training yourself. Stay active on the social media.

8. Outgoing personality: an outgoing personality is something that always helps find a job. Always maintain a positive attitude.

9. Time flexibility: it will always be easier to find a job if you have time flexibility. Never reject something you are interested in just because of the hours. If you are the successful candidate, you will always be able to re-organise yourself and find alternatives to reconcile professional and personal life.

10. Adapt yourself to the social media. Create your profile on professional networks such as LinkedIn and create your own network of contacts. (Read: “10 reasons to use Twitter when looking for a job“)

11. Languages: increase your knowledge of languages. You will always be more employable if you know a second or third language. (Read: “Language skills: a huge plus for job hunters“)

12. CV: Create your CV carefully, record a one-minute video summarising your professional experience and send it to your network of contacts. Modern mobile telephones can be used to record videos of a suitable quality.

13. Basic interview techniques: prepare for job interviews. Find out about the company, the vacancy, ask yourself questions and come up with some good answers. Assume the role of interviewer. (Read: “10 tips for a successful job interview“)

14. Networking: look after your networks of contacts and make sure everyone you know knows you are looking for a job.

15. Personal brand: Take care with what you do and the messages you post on the networks. Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, etc. Remember that your digital profile can be seen by everyone and it is an opportunity to enhance your jobsearch activity.

 

Laura Alcaraz Escribano
Development Department
ACCIONA Human Resources