How to Court Your Career

How cool is this? I'm writing an article about how to conduct a job search by interviewing the author of Courting Your Career, an insightful book which incorporates the metaphor of dating. As in how to identify your type, play the field/cast a wide net, present your very best self, and build relationships throughout the entire process.

While he dished about relevant dating topics by strategizing the job search process (i.e., attending a Women for Hire job fair in the near future? Think of it as "clubbing!" Translation: meeting a lot of prospects in a short amount of time), as a recruiter it's interesting being the "other half."

Just as sometimes you hear the, "It's not you, it's me" speech thinking, "Yeah right, it's so me!", in all honesty sometimes a job rejection may not be a reflection on your candidacy. Sometimes job requirements change during the recruiting process, sometimes a position is filled in internally…there could be a variety of reasons as to why it wasn't meant to be.

"It's out there," you convincingly remind yourself during the job search and that's just it. Sometimes it's not necessarily Mr. Right, rather it could be Mr. Right Now. That's ok.

Perhaps there's a job which can get you from your current situation, Point A to Point B and you know you really want to end up in Point S for Spectacular (I was going for Point C but couldn't think of anything other than Cool!) so there's nothing wrong with realizing there could be a lot of opportunities for you right now. This way, it could fulfill your short-term goals and be a stepping stone to your long-term goals intead of holding out for the elusive "one."

Plus, in the job search process, how's this for empowerment? You have the ability to assess the situation, future colleagues, and organization. It takes two to tango and well, you always have the opportunity to opt out of the dance.

By asking the right questions/observing/being immersed in the courtship maybe you'll realize a particular or company job sizzles on paper and then it fizzles. Hopefully you'll be able to assess the situation before you start the job, only to realize it's not quite a fit. And how about mentoring programs? Work/life balance? Benefits? Perks? The job exploration process incorporates intangible aspects as well.

And that's just it. The author, Shawn Graham, reminds us something which often gets lost in the shuffle. What's your type? What are you looking for? What are your must-haves? Sometimes it's imperative to go back to basics, not to compromise but to simply outline your priorities, and just like dating -- to have a whole lot of patience.