Pro Tips for Landing Your Dream Job

Work makes up a huge portion of our lives, so it makes sense to do something you love. Finding your dream job isn’t always that easy, however, and the job market is competitive. So what's the best way to stand out to prospective employers? Whether you’re a recent graduate or a seasoned employee looking for your next career move, here are five pro tips to help you apply to, and land, your dream job.

Uncover your skill set
Before you can pitch yourself to prospective employers, you need to uncover your talents and skills. When you search for jobs, look at the “desired skills” section to see if you match up. Start compiling a list of all the skills you think you have, and another list of areas to improve. Not having every desirable skill in a listing doesn’t mean you won’t get the job. It just means you’ll need to admit your areas of weakness and commit to working on them to further your professional development.

Know where to look
When it comes to the job hunt, where you look makes a huge difference to the outcome of your search. It’s easy to feel that the perfect job doesn’t exist, or that you’re under-qualified to follow your dreams. However, you might just be looking in the wrong places. Social platforms like LinkedIn and Twitter have a surprising number of vacancies advertised, as do job boards like Gumtree. Here, you can filter by location (for example, searching “jobs in Glasgow”) or by sector, so you’ll always find what you’re looking for. You can also post a free ad stating that you’re looking for work, upload your resume, and reach out to employers directly.

Utilize social media
Just because a job isn’t listed doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. Most experts agree that at least half of all jobs are never advertised. Instead, these recruiters rely on professional networking or else they fill roles internally. Therefore, it’s in your interest to utilize social media to build relationships with companies you admire so you can get your foot in the door.

Don’t be afraid to cold email
You can email employers directly to pitch an idea or state your interest in a position – even if there’s no job advertised. At best, you’ll get a chance to interview for the role. At worst, your details will be kept on file in case any positions become available, or they will tell you what you need to do to match their hiring criteria.

Customize your resume
Even if you’re applying to multiple jobs in the same industry, most hiring managers will check your resume to see how closely it matches their criteria. Therefore, you should always customize your resume to match each position you apply to. Not all candidates do this – so taking some extra time to tweak your application will give you a competitive edge.

Looking for a job is hard work, and it can be a lengthy process. The key is to remain confident of your abilities and don’t let rejections deter you. With determination and plenty of research, there’s no reason why you can’t work for your dream company and become the next big thing in your industry.