Get Job-Search Ready: Seven Items To Prepare While You Shelter In Place

Caroline Ceniza-Levine Senior Contributor

It can be harder to concentrate while working from home, and social distancing may impede your networking, but you can still get job search ready while you wait for the economy to open up. Here are seven items you can work on while you shelter in place:

1 - Story for why you are looking

It’s no secret that the economy and therefore the job market is expected to be adversely affected by the pandemic. Therefore, if you already have a job, prospective employers will want to know why you are looking now. Why are you willing to take a risk and venture out into a shrinking, more competitive job pool? If you don’t have a good answer, some will assume the worst – that you are being pushed out.

The fix? Never go negative on your current job and instead focus on what is exciting about your next job. Tailor your response to the employer you’re talking to. Job search is like dating – employers want to know you’re genuinely interested in them, not just looking to get away from your ex. If you were laid off during the pandemic, you still need a story about what you’re looking for, and it should also be what is exciting about your next job, not how desperate you are about any job. Again, think of the dating parallel – employers don’t want to be the rebound relationship. 

4 - Video interview

Video interviews are not the same as live interviews, so you need to prepare for video interviews specifically. In addition, there are recorded video interviews (e.g., Interview Stream, Easy Hire) where you don’t have a live interaction but rather receive a set of questions and answer to a recording. Be aware that employers are using these tools, so you can prepare now.

The fix? With the increase in video calls because of social distancing mandates, it’s easy to get complacent with the technology and act too familiar on an interview. You’re also in your home instead of a formal office – more encouragement to get casual. Practice video interviewing for jobs specifically. Enlist a friend from HR or a coach to take you through a mock video interview. Record a video interview from start-to-finish to simulate the recorded interviews you may be asked to do.

All 7 items and the complete Forbes article