The 4D's of Job Getting

A few college friends of mine hit me with this question: "What is the average amount of time between graduation and employment?" I was perplexed, here it was months after graduation and they still did not have positions. College students are in high demand, they work for less, and are easy to train. Please don’t be disappointed here, but from my experience the average time between graduation and employment has been four weeks. Yes, I said four weeks --- see, most students get the word out to potential employers before school has even been completed – or they use the 4D's of Job Getting!

Do you want a job by the end of four weeks? If so, let me show you how, of course if you would rather take longer to find work, I wouldn’t want you to waste your time. Let us first overview the 4D's of Job Getting --- decide, divide, devour, and declare. This simple method works for both recent graduates or those just looking for a career change.

First you must decide.

Talk to yourself a little bit here, determine your interests, your preferences, take some notes. Decide what would be the ideal position, location, and salary. You may need to do some research here, ask friends about different locations, and call trade associations in your area of interest. Write a single statement describing your decision for employment. You will also want to have your resumé together, but I wasn’t playing you for a fool.

This single statement, the job statement, helps you target in on the job that is right for you. You should have also singled out some strengths you possess and can provide to a new employer. With this information in mind you can move on to the next step --- well, don't go so fast.

This step is the shortest yet should take the most time and thought. Don't short change yourself by not deciding the details that shape the career that is right for you and your interests. Remember you will be expected to actually show up and work after you are hired. This is where you visualize the career, position, or job on your way to what you want to do for the rest of your life or at least the next couple of years.

Next you divide.

Get four major newspapers, business listings, and visit online to career sites such as the ones provided in the attached supplement to generate position ideas. Gather specific job openings that match the job statement you decided on earlier. Lay these positions out on a table in order of preference or based on the most ideal company to work for. Go over your selection and narrow down the position to your top four. You can use index cards to do this, or just make a list on your computer, what ever works for you.

I am recommending four positions here because you don’t have a long time to interview. I have promised you a job in four weeks and you can’t do that if you spend more than a few days with each section. Your interviews will take at least two weeks to complete. Just select the top four companies by any criteria that is important to you.

Time to devour.

You must be ready to devour any book, news article, customer profile, or website --- anything you can find on the companies you wish to work for. Do your homework, learn about the position, call other organizations who work with the companies you are targeting and ask about that businesses' reputation. Find out from these people, "How do you or would you like to work for their organization?" If they wouldn't like to work for that company you may not want to, either. I have learned so many things from actual employees of a prospective employer, always remember to talk to a few people don't let one persons' negative attitude taint your search. Just like anyone else, people have gripes and some people 'sugar coat' things they may tell you, double check all information.

Learn everything you can about your potential employer. Right down to benefits package, general salary information for both the company and how it compares to the general market, names of owners, names of prospective management, and so on. Create a short biography on each of the companies in your top four positions, cover information about the owners and the development of the company itself.

You can even use your half page summary to hone up on your interview intelligence and reduce some of the nervousness related to your interview. This could be at your disadvantage, do have a few questions to verify your assumptions. You wouldn't want to sit through an entire interview, never asking a question about the company (because you answered them before hand) only to find out that your interviewers thought you were not interested because you didn't ask any questions. This has happened before!

Declare you contribution.

I declare, it's time for the interviews. Schedule interviews with each of the four companies you have selected, declaring in your cover letter some definite contribution you can provide to their organization upon your employment. Follow up and get an appointment for the first interview. By now you should already know about each companies benefits, work environment, and reputation. Don't procrastinate here, if one company doesn't commit to an interview, move on, they may just be tied up with internal matters.

When you come to the interview ask not about what they can do for you, but declare what you can realistically provide for them. This is so important because companies really want someone who will solve problems, this also gives them a reason to hire you, and declares what they can expect from you. Talking about what you can do for them (realistically) also opens up other positions that may be in the wings.

If they ask you what you expect to be paid, you ask “What will you be paying your best candidate for this position?” --- after they answer that and ask what you want, declare the value you can provide their organization and then tell them exactly what you wish to be paid. You decided on your salary in the first step above, don't let any company short change you --- you did your home work and have three other companies in mind, stand firm, but be realistic in relation to your current job market.

If they fall out of their chair, or you thought it would be funny to provide some outrageous number, don’t back down. Consistently declare what you can provide them, how your services will help them meet the goals of the organization (you know these from your research) and work towards a win-win proposition. Don’t accept a position until you have interviewed with each of the four companies you have selected and get any offers in writing.

Put their offer on the table by saying, “There are three other interviews I would like to attend to, I have your offer here in writing, will it be good two weeks from now?” You have done two things here. You let them know you intend to keep your commitments with other interviews as well as left yourself a two week window where an offer will still stand. Of course if this is your fourth interview and all has gone well, this is the best position, and you are ready --- by all means accept the offer.

The ball will be in your court now. Select a company, call them up, and start work the next week. You're not done yet. After your first day of work at your new company, write a sincere letter to each of the other companies you did not accept with and thank them for their time. This leaves the door open for you should your new position not work out, or you wish to have a little change in a few years or so.

Bringing everything together (a) you decide on a job statement and your contributions to your potential employer, (b) divide the available jobs in the realm of your job statement into the top four positions by company, you then devour all the necessary information you need to be knowledgeable about the companies and positions you choose, and finally (d) you interview and declare your contribution to the company, stand firm on a price, and gain the employment of your choice. In four weeks you will have the job of your choice, because your interviewer will know you care enough about this position to do your homework and make sure it is the right fit. Start today, I am looking forward to hearing about your achievements!

Resources You Can Use:

Here are some exciting places to start online when looking for your new career, your lifes passion, and everything you put together in the 4D's to Job Getting! Register your résumé with each site and before you know it, you will be right where you want to be, in an interview. These sites also have more tips on closing your position.

CareerBuilder --- http://www.careerbuilder.com/

Monster Job Site --- http://www.monster.com/

JobsOnline --- http://www.jobsonline.com/

Cruel World --- http://www.cruelworld.com/

Career Central --- http://www.careercentral.com/

Justin Hitt is a Strategic Relations Consultant helping businesses grow stronger relationships, and author of the booklet “101 Strategies for more Profitable Customers”, send $7 and a self-addressed, double-stamped envelope to the Center for Strategic Relations, Dept. A0402, PMB 6618, 2711 Centerville Rd., Ste 120, Wilmington, DE 19808 or online at http://www.justinhitt.com/ Quantity discounts available.

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