Summer's coming, but that doesn't mean that your job search should wait. Summer is approaching. PCS season is upon us. School will be ending soon, and vacations are imminent.
These are the reasons many of my friends and acquaintances give for not working on their job search plan right now.
For others, the causes are more long-term. “I can’t have a career with my husband’s job and our family” and “There are no jobs at our duty station.”
If you’ve found yourself nodding your head in agreement, this post is for you. Even if you aren’t looking for a job right now, MSCCN’s services can prepare you for the day when you do find the opportunity (and the time)…or the day when the opportunity finds you. Consider the following:
1. The job search and career development are processes. There is always something to do. Whether you think you’ll be looking for work in three months, a year, or three years, there’s an action to take NOW to keep yourself moving towards that goal. An employment specialist can help you identify what you can be doing now to develop or keep your skills fresh.
These are the reasons many of my friends and acquaintances give for not working on their job search plan right now.
For others, the causes are more long-term. “I can’t have a career with my husband’s job and our family” and “There are no jobs at our duty station.”
If you’ve found yourself nodding your head in agreement, this post is for you. Even if you aren’t looking for a job right now, MSCCN’s services can prepare you for the day when you do find the opportunity (and the time)…or the day when the opportunity finds you. Consider the following:
1. The job search and career development are processes. There is always something to do. Whether you think you’ll be looking for work in three months, a year, or three years, there’s an action to take NOW to keep yourself moving towards that goal. An employment specialist can help you identify what you can be doing now to develop or keep your skills fresh.
2. Rome wasn’t built in a day. The job search process is long. It’s fine and good to think that we can focus on the job search process AFTER we’ve PCSed, AFTER summer has ended, etc (the list of AFTERs can go on and on…), but arriving at the next duty station, point in life, etc, with a job search goal, a resume, a network and so on makes life easier. Sure, that resume may need to be updated, but starting with a resume is easier than starting without one.
3. We don’t know when opportunity will knock. Very few things in military life go according to plan in my experience. Think your home goods are arriving today? Nope, that’ll be next week. Have dinner plans for six? Sorry, last minute duty change means a cold dinner or table for one. Think you’ll be PCSing in May? Nope, they need you there NOW. You get my point. So, what if opportunity knocks when you least expect it? Your friend knows about an amazing opportunity that just opened up at his company? You find a position that actually meets your skills and experience, and it closes tomorrow night? Doing the heavy lifting that comes to the job search before you need to allows you to be ready for the unexpected.
The time to start your job search and your career plan is now—it’s never tomorrow. If you don’t know where to start, an Employment Specialist can help you on your path to success.
(Oh, and it’s free.)
Good luck!
Jamie
3. We don’t know when opportunity will knock. Very few things in military life go according to plan in my experience. Think your home goods are arriving today? Nope, that’ll be next week. Have dinner plans for six? Sorry, last minute duty change means a cold dinner or table for one. Think you’ll be PCSing in May? Nope, they need you there NOW. You get my point. So, what if opportunity knocks when you least expect it? Your friend knows about an amazing opportunity that just opened up at his company? You find a position that actually meets your skills and experience, and it closes tomorrow night? Doing the heavy lifting that comes to the job search before you need to allows you to be ready for the unexpected.
The time to start your job search and your career plan is now—it’s never tomorrow. If you don’t know where to start, an Employment Specialist can help you on your path to success.
(Oh, and it’s free.)
Good luck!
Jamie
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