Life’s Journey - Find Your Path

Unemployment is currently at 10.2% nationally, a 26-year high. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, there are 6.3 job hunters for every available job — 3 times that found during a healthy economy.

In today’s ecomony, you need to maximize the number of job opportunities you can pursue. To do so, you can’t rely on any one approach or resource.

We will be highlighting different approaches you can take to maximize your job opportunities. Here’s the second approach to consider:

LinkUp.com

All of the jobs on this site are imported directly from company websites. According to LinkUp, they currently have over 22,297 companies in their database. These companies are located throughout the United States and range in size from small companies to large Fortune 500 companies.

Companies do not advertise all of their job openings on Monster, CareerBuilder, and other “pay-for” job sites. LinkUp contains many jobs that cannot be found anywhere else on the web.

According to LinkUp, the biggest difference between listings on other job sites and LinkUp is the depth and detail. Since their jobs come from company websites, you will find more descriptive job listings, requirements and qualifications, benefits, and company culture information.

LinkUp.com

A general rule of thumb is that the length of time it will take to find a new position is equal to one month for every $10,000 in salary you desire, e.g. a $60,000 position will take 6 months to obtain. 

The average length of unemployment is currently 24.5 weeks with 29% of the unemployed being out of work 6 months or more, both records.

Factors that would likely increase the length of time it takes you to find a new opportunity include:

• The job market being slow in general
• The desired industry being one that has been particularly hard hit by layoffs like the financial services industry
• The desired functional area being one that is experiencing little job growth
• A career change
• An industry change
• Being at a salary level above the market rate for your target position
• Re-entering the workforce after a lengthy absence
• Frequent job changes
• Your age
• Lacking the degree typically required for a desired position

The intention in providing you with these statistics is to help you realize upfront that you need to be as proactive as possible in your job search.  One of the biggest issues you will find yourself facing in today’s job market is the limited number of job opportunities. 

We will be highlighting different approaches you can take to maximize your job opportunities. Here’s the first approach to consider:

Industry and Professional Associations

To maximize your job opportunities,

• Use sources like Weddle’s Association Directory to identify appropriate associations.
• Become active in the associations you identify by attending association meetings to stay current in your field and to network.
• Post your resume on relevant industry and professional association web sites.
• Check for new job postings on each site at least weekly and apply to appropriate positions.