How to survive the job market

Part two of three

Here I am, whirling in a tornado of resumes. Let’s examine the resume’s critical role. The purpose of a resume is not to get you a job, it’s to not lose you a job. To not not get you a job, if you will.

Actually, the resume’s concept is "less is more." It’s not what you say, but what you don’t say. As somebody once said, "It’s easy to draw an elephant. Just take away everything that doesn’t look like one."

What gets a person a job is not something that groups you with other job-seekers. It’s what separates you and puts you on a direct path. Think about it. Think about jobs you’ve gotten. Think about the jobs other people have landed. There is always something that influences that point of "getting the job."

I’ve heard that as many as 70 percent of jobs go to people who network. It’s not what you know, maybe it’s not even who you know.

I believe that what really seals the deal is broader than that. Call it an intervention . . . of any kind. It could be your lucky day, like the 10th of the month. It could be a spiritual intervention. Maybe, it’s where you shop.

Hey, it might even be your mother-in-law. That actually happened for my nephew, a University of Delaware honor graduate in biology, who now works for the U.S. Treasury.

However, if you believe this, you may be tempted to wait around for such intervention. But not so fast. I tried that, too. Actually doing nothing doesn’t work either.

By definition, an intervention can only occur when there is something to intervene with. I don’t think watching the 13-part French Revolution on the History Channel qualifies.

Unless you were trying to give yourself a break from the computer and you sit down to watch TV and see an ad for the school you decide to attend. That could happen. But, doing nothing? Nothing doing!

How do you trigger an essential intervention? I wish I had the answer. I certainly wouldn’t be writing this article.

Despite the futility, you cannot ignore conventional job-seeking. The intervention that eventually gets you the gold ring is likely to be connected to discovering a job opening. Kind of like buried treasure.

And where real jobs are posted is certainly a place to get acquainted with. The point is that though you can’t arrange for your own intervention, it stands to reason that there needs to be a final destination. Intervention is what gets you through the maze.

What about head-hunters? Alas, that is yet another not-so-perfect option. Job placement, temp agencies, even executive search firms are not working for you. Not actively, and certainly not proactively. They need to place people, but they are working for their clients.

Their clients are the companies that need to fill positions. They are not people looking for work. The companies foot the bill, not you. Remember, you’re not footking the bill. You’re broke, with no job.

You have no choice but to continue. My journey has wrung me through the Employment Development Department, splattered me all over the Internet, dragged me into a shoe store and right to the bottom of my personal barrel.

In my case, I recently lived through the three longest days of my life . . . as a house painter. Whoa! That was a sharp jab. That’ll do it. That will make you think, and ache. That makes you want to blame me for all the wrong things you’ve done in your life. But bottom line, that doesn’t work, either.

Contact the Bill Martin Job Hotline: 805.358.2319 billymartin5@sbcglobal.com