10 Things Wrong With Your Job Search.

Job Search In Kenya.

The bottom line is, why are you still unemployed in spite of your serious efforts and strong desire to get the job of your choice? Many Kenyans expect a simple, short and precise answer. Unfortunately there is nothing like that. The reason for this is that the Kenyan employment process is complex, and usually in stages. The other reason is that the recruitment process is imprecise, varying from company to company, and from one individual responsible for recruitment to another.

For you, it may just be that you are not getting one particular stage or skill right; for others, it may be two or three or more!

So what can be wrong? Below is a summary of the main issues i have found common with Kenyan job seekers.

1. Poor understanding of self.
most of us do not know ourselves enough to make informed decision about our job/career direction.
What skills do we have to provide a possible clue on career direction
job and career goal depends on the skills you have
Skills are the foundation of job search. Employers want to know what it is you can do for them.
Now do you have personal goals in life? Without a vision, most young people today are just drifting in the sea of life.

2.poor understanding of the employers hiring process and attitude
In most situations, employment/hiring have been turned to a two- lane expressway – where there is little or no contact (hence no information) between on-coming and on-going vehicles
For example, when you desire to work for any organization what do you do? You approach the HR department for information and possible assistance.
Right? Wrong. The major role of personnel department in the recruitment process is to screen you out!

3.Poor management of change arising from joblessness.
Whether you are unemployed, under employed, employed by looking for a better job, or entering the work for the very first time, or entering after a long absence, you are facing change situation.
And change affects our emotions – relief, anticipation, or renewal, or you may fell anger, sadness, fear, depression or confusion. These feelings are natural. The key to successful management of change (and attendant transition) is attitude.
How much of you time, energy and money are you willing invest in yourself, or better still in your future? Do you realize that looking for a job is indeed a full time job if you are unemployed? Are you ready to work at it?

4. Ineffective job – hunt strategy.
If you are not going to anywhere in particular, any road will lead you there.
Where, in terms of which sector or industry or company or geographic location would you like to work?
If we assume that you have your job target, the question then, how to do you reach this objective? How do you get a shot at your dream job without which you stand no chance of getting it at all?
Job seekers who want to succeed will have to do the knocking, the digging, the searching.

5.Ineffective Resume / CV
The basics of a resume/CV are that it should be letter perfect, neat, easy to read and organized. Easy part.
The hard part is putting that resume or CV to work, making it do as mush as a CV can do i.e. making it a successful sales brochure. But no matter how well – organized, how neat, how smoothly written your resume is, if it does not have any “sell” in it, it is not doing its job.
Do you use your resume/CV effectively? Check www.staff-kenya.com for answers.

6.Inadequate skills for passing job aptitude tests.
It is to test the abilities of the applicants in the basic skills required to do the job effectively – comprehension, verbal and quantitative skills, quantitative ability, logical reasoning, speed and accuracy, specific job skills, etc.

At any rate, it is a barrier you must adequately prepare to cross. So except you master these tests and perform well in them, your dream of getting a top flight job might suffer sudden – death

7.Ineffective Application Letter
The application letter (also referred to as cover letter ) is suppose to customize your Resume/CV for particular job.It should state how your experience and qualification meet the requirements of the job. Again check www.staff-kenya.com who do CV and cover letter writing.

8.Inadequate preparation for job interview
For any interview, thorough preparation is the cornerstone for making positive impressions at job interviews..
For a start, you need to be unformed about the company/industry: key players, levels of salary, technology, success factors, etc.
And the small davids that can lead to the fall of Goliath: do you know the venue of the interview not to get lost, and get to the place late? Are you properly dressed? Practise with a freind on how to respond to interview questions.

9.Poor conduct and presentation.
Qualifications are important but the whole person is more important
How much does that person come across? How enthusiastic/positive is this individual?
It is not only about what you will say, but also about how you say it-non – verbal expressions
Findings indicated that within the first few minutes of any personal meeting with somebody who has the power to hire you or screen you out, the decision has pretty much been made
And now to your personality traits. For example, are you stable, honest,ambitious, courteous, etc? Employer has their way of discovering people with extreme behavior of any type.

10 . Poor interview skills
There are basically five questions you get at job interviews:
•Why are you here? (Why do you want to work for us?)
•What can you do for us?
•What kind of a person are you?
•What distinguish you from the other if people who have the same ability as you have? And finally
•Can we afford you?

So if a job seeker does not have answers to these questions before any interview, then he/she hasn’t started to look for work. Same for some specific/uncomfortable questions.

For me, these are the areas i have identified to be wanting with many Kenyan job-seekers be it first timers or experienced professionals. The message here is to work on those things you have control over and see your job/career change for the better in 2011.

All the best.

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