NEWSTHE SEARCH PROCESS

One of the most popular and among my favorite listservs for jobs is Jobs That Are Left. I think it is a great list with a ton of smart, connected people on it. Many good jobs are posted there every day. But read this quick note that went out this morning to the list:

"I cannot express my excitement!  I am thrilled to announce that our little community has reached 10,000 direct members!"

10,000!!!

So that is good in sense that a lot of people will be posting jobs. But it is much worse in the sense that you are competing with potentially thousands of others applying for one, single, great job.

My advice, as it always is, is to supplement great lists like this one through networking and growing your contacts list. This way you can get the big picture of the jobs out that there are being offered from your favorite lists while building and maintaining critical relationships that get you in the door.

This article that you are about to consume is what in the biz is know as a “listicle”. This term is a conflation of the words “list” and “article”. Basically it is a cheap way for a write to get you to click on an article or blog post because you think it will be an easy read and will contain information that you will readily be able to put to use.

Unfortunately, since it is I who am writing this listicle, you will find absolutely nothing of use and you might as well stop reading now if you haven’t already. If not, prepare for some listing!

Number 5

The job-seeker will fixate one campaign at a time, and then if he doesn’t get that campaign, moves on to the next prospect. This is problematic because it wastes time, time that could be spent applying for other campaigns simultaneously. My advice is to pick up to 3 campaigns at a time that you really want to work on and hit them all at once. This way you won’t fall behind others who are applying to other campaigns that you might also want to work on.

Number 4

The job-seeker will use geography as a primary reason to work or not work on a campaign. Remember: always choose the race over the place. Picking a good race, that is good for your career and has a good chance of winning is much more important that spending a summer on the coast in a safe district.

Number 3

The job-seeker doesn’t utilize his network and only passively uses job lists to apply. Job lists are important but you need to work your network for leads and connections as well as keep an eye on your job sites and list-serves. You need to cover all of your based to get a good race in a reasonable timeframe.

Number 2

Campaign worker wannabes look past the great races in their own area because they are hell-bent on moving elsewhere. Don’t! Though many races will require you to make a move, just because one happens to be local doesn’t make it a great opportunity for you.

Number 1

The job seeker won’t make sacrifices to work on a campaign. You must be prepared to make reasonable sacrifices to work on a race. Some of these include: buying a car, breaking your lease, moving away from home and missing your mom. (Hi mom!)

We are all know how important meeting new people and staying connected to those we already know are critical to the job search process. But how many out there put the time and effort into their networks to make them bear fruit? The answer: not a whole lot. Which is good for you!

Join me tomorrow, November 16th, at 3pm ET with the New Organizing Institute to learn how to get the edge over your peers and competitors by more effectively engaging your network in your job search.

All the information you need to sign up for the FREE class is right here.

There will also be a question and answer period after the presentation. Hope to see you there!

It’s not too late to get involved in the 2009 elections! Your local city council, mayoral, county council, county executive, initiatives, levy and proposition campaigns need your help to Get Out The Vote (GOTV) and make sure that all of their supporters get to the ballot.

If you have regretted your lack of networking our campaign outreach that you have done this cycle now is the time to make up for all of that. Campaigns are hurting for driven volunteers who can help at this critical time.

My advice:

1. Go down to the campaign office of your preferred candidate or issue
2. Ask to volunteer
3. Make sure to meet the staff, the candidate, the campaign spokespeople and the consultants if you can – they are the people who will help you get a paid position in 2010
4. Do a really good job, show up on time and demonstrate your skills and commitment to the people in charge there
5. This really, truly actually works. If you want to get involved in politics this is where you start and there is no better time in an election to come in and save the day.

So, you are applying for jobs. You have a decent resume, good references and pretty much the best cover letter in America today. But you still aren’t getting a call back.

“WTF,” you might text to your friends. WTF indeed.

Non-profits and campaigns are getting a ton of resumes these days. I am sure you are aware. So employers have to sift through a lot of applications. You need some back-up to get your resume read and get a call back.

My advice: enlist the help of your network to get mutual allies to reach out to the hiring manager at the place you are applying to.

So let’s say you are applying to work at my firm, M+R. First, find out who is doing the hiring. I mean the actual name and title of the person. Also, do you know anyone who works at the firm who can vouch for you or just walk down the hall and drop your resume off? Recruit them to put in a good word.

OK, now let’s take a step back out. M+R has a lot of clients. Have you ever worked with any of them? Let’s say you used to be a communication’s assistant for the Save Darfur Coalition. Why not have your old boss, or someone who worked with M+R frequently, to make a call too and put in a good word.

Finally, do you have any friends with connections to the firm who can give you a good word? Make the ask.

The goal here is to get your name out to the people at M+R who are in charge to bolster your chances of getting a calsl back. In my experience this is what will put you over the top. Because not only are they going to call a good candidate (you) for a job but they are also helping out a friend, colleague or client who they don’t want to disappoint at a personal level.

So it’s ok to get some close allies to do some phone banking on your behalf. It might seem a tad annoying but it’s definitely a winning strategy.

I've seen a great mix of coverage on the ongoing quest of job seekers lately. A headline on the latest issue of the Onion asserts "Nation's Unemployment Outlook Improves Drastically After Fifth Beer," and the Wall Street Journal states "Brave or Brazen? Bold Tactics Don't Always Get the Job."

While I certainly realize that the Onion is in its own category, both headlines speak to the overwhelming impact that attitude and the actions that follow have on your job search.

The job search is lasting longer than ever, and job seekers are becoming increasingly aggressive in their quest for a interview. It doesn't help that blogs like www.thesimplejobsearch.com are telling job seekers to "follow up until you hear 'yes' or 'no'," and "pick [the phone] up and call employers you really want to work for, if only to tell them your resume is coming and drop one pertinent fact you found in your research."

While job seekers are getting fed advice about being unique and pushing to show their interest, recruiters and employers are wary of the extra attention, and, according to the WSJ article, are backing away from overly aggressive behavior.

Job seekers have started to make unscheduled visits at recruiting offices, sending resumes directly to higher ups in the organization, stretching or falsifying connections, attempting to schedule meetings for themselves by using Microsoft Outlook to schedule appointments for the employer, and generally stepping on the toes of recruiters and organizations.

Here's the key in all this, as written in the WSJ article: "Recruiters say the best ways to stand out don't change with the unemployment rate: network, craft a well-written resume and cover letter, and be prepared during interviews."

Job seekers shouldn't spin their wheels so much - in a time when employers are receiving more applications than ever, job seekers need to let them do their work and let their materials and connections work for them. Either that or settle down and drink a few beers, and wait for the buzz to implant "unbridled optimism" and a bright future ahead.

Whether you realize it or not – the 2010 cycle is upon us. In fact it has been for many races since the beginning of this year.

For the most part races just have finance staff at this point – I’m talking federal house and senate races. Some of the top-tier races have campaign managers but most won’t hire managers until the end of this year or early next year.

So there really aren’t any jobs to apply for at this point. So why a post on this subject? Well, you need to get your resume out on front of folks early and often. Here are 5 great places to send or upload your resume so they will be in front of the right people when hiring decision start to get made.

DCCC Talent Bank

Upload your resume and information here so the DCCC has it on hand!

DSCC Job Bank

Check out there. You just need to send them an email.

4C Partners

This is one of the premier political consulting firms in the country right now. Click here to send them your resume so they can push the best candidates out to their clients and races.

Jobs that are Left

This is a good job list (but not as good as Jobs for Change) that you can use to post jobs or resumes. I would wait on this one though. It is not really a database – it’s a Google Group – so employers will just see your resume once in an email. Send your resume out to this list in April, May and June.

NOI Job List

Our own lovely guest blogger, Anne Marie Ashburn manages this list. Make sure you are on it. Same timeline and rules apply here as they did for Jobs that are left.

Now don’t get me wrong. I am not so full of myself that I actually think I am anywhere or here - or wherever. But I think that for someone looking to get involved in politics and campaigns they might wonder how I got a job at a consulting firm and on campaigns.

I’ll tell you.

2004

I was working at a call center when I was in college. A colleague told me that I ought to get an internship while I was in school. He said that he had wished he did one. So, without knowing much about politics or anything really I applied for just one internship – at the WA State Democratic Party. I worked there 2 days a week unpaid and cut press clips, built office furniture, got coffee and transcribed the speeches of our opponents.

I guess I did a good enough job that they offered me a staff position as an organizer. They asked me to move across the state. And I did. I took time off school to do it.

At the time that all felt like a big risk and change. Looking back that was nothing. But I felt that graduating on time and hanging out with my friends and girlfriend were the most important things. Leaving school, and my city and my friends for a job was an important step and I am glad I took it early.

*Take little risks in stride. Take bigger risks if you feel they are worth it. This was a little risk that felt big. Perspective plays a big part in that.

2005

I graduated college on time with honors. But everybody did. It was only political science so getting a magna, or summa cum laude after your name was pretty easy. But my parents were happy and I am happy to put it at the bottom of my resume under education.

I must have applied for 50 jobs after college. You see, back in 2005, there were actually jobs to apply for.

I started working at my consulting firm, in the brand new Seattle branch, about a week after I graduated. I found the job on Craigslist.

I did really shitty work.

I missed important details, I felt sitting at the front desk was beneath me, I worked hard but didn’t get much out of it. Looking back I was lucky to keep that job because it took me a while to get my act together.

But eventually I did. My boss was a good mentor and cared about staff development. I got a raise and a promotion after a year of proving myself and taking more care in my work.

2006

I quit my job. Or at least I tried to. I got a job managing a targeted WA State House race outside of Seattle. I did this by networking with local consultants and the Democratic Caucus. You can read more here about the specifics of that.

By try I mean I didn’t quit. I was able to bring this race in as a client and keep my consulting job. I also got to work on a few other projects while I manage the race. This was all my wonderful boss’ idea.

I had made an important niche for myself at work and my boss didn’t want to lose me so that was the deal we struck. It was a good one.

We ended up winning that race by a decent margin – the highest ever. Mostly due to the Democratic wave that was sweeping state and federal races across the country. But a victory always feels good.

I went back to work at the firm in Seattle but already had my sights on DC.

2007-2009 tomorrow. OMG are you excited or what??

Filling out a job application, on-line or on paper, may be trickier than it sounds. You need to be prepared. Many Human Resource Departments may require such a form in addition to your resume. I still recommend trying to find someone within the organization to discuss the position and your qualifications with, but you may need to jump through this hoop, so do it right. The application is a screening device; you want to make sure you are called in for an interview.

1.     Start by downloading a sample form (or a copy of the real one, if available) and gather the necessary information. Have an up-to-date resume, so you have easy access to data on your previous places of employment, social security number, dates, supervisors and their contact information. Make sure your references know what you’re applying for and that they may be contacted. Some places will want their own form filled out AND a copy of your resume and reference sheet. Make sure all information matches.

2.     Read the entire application first so you know how to divide up information from your resume to avoid duplication. Follow all directions exactly; if they ask for last name then first name, do it that way!  Be sure to tailor your information to the job at hand, highlighting what’s important for this particular job and employer, starting with most recent experience.

3.     If you’re filling it out by hand, use black or blue ink only, print neatly, and do not fold, wrinkle, or spill on the form.  No spelling errors. First impressions matter. Remember to sign and date it if asked.

4.     Do not leave anything blank. Write N/A (not applicable) if this is the case.

5.     Do not lie. If asked about a criminal record or whether you’ve ever been fired, write “will discuss at interview” if there’s room; if not, you must check “yes” if that’s the case. But this being said, do not volunteer such information. If asked why you left a previous job (and you were fired), simply write “job terminated” or “accepted new position” and explain only if asked.

6.     If you have employment gaps, try to fill them with real entries: “full-time family responsibilities”, “cared for sick family member/parents” “volunteer work”, “coursework.”

7.     If asked to state previous salary, you should, but if asked for salary range (and they have not stated one), write “negotiable” or “commensurate with scope of job and experience.” If they state a number, use it but add “range”: $40,000 range

8.     Make a copy of your completed application; if filling it out on line, see if you can save as a PDF or at least cut and paste answers into a file so you’ll know exactly what you sent if called for an interview. If you’re filling it out on paper on the spot, ask if you might pay for a Xeroxed copy.

A couple months ago the New Organizing Institute held a job advice webinar with Ben Rattray, CEO and Founder of Change.org, then, seeing the size of the audience and the slew of questions we got, we followed up with another webinar on getting a job on the Hill (featuring Tom Manatos, Speaker Pelosi's office, and Rob Pierson, House Democratic Caucus). When over 400 people signed up for that one, we figured we had better roll up our sleeves and get these webinar advice sessions out asap.

Zach Knowling, your beloved blogger, is featured on one of these New Organizing Institute webinars - and he'll know if you sign up or not... :)

Here's a few of our upcoming events.  I'm more than willing to pile on to this list, so email over your suggestions for more speakers/topics to annemarie@neworganizing.com!

August 20th: Technology Jobs

Josh Hendler, the Director of Technology at the DNC (and a former NOI consultant), and John Miyasato, Managing Principal and former tech recruiter with Crossroads Campaigns, will give the run down of what kind of tech jobs are available, the skills you need to have to get them, and how you can train yourself to be ready for these jobs in the meantime. Sign up here!

August 28th: Beginning a progressive nonprofit career

NOI's own Heather Cronk, Training Director and formerly the Director of Campus Programs at Idealist, will answer Q&A and provide an overview of various careers in progressive nonprofits. Sign up here!

September 8th: Campaign Jobs

We're bringing you two rockstar former campaign staffers - Zach Knowling, a survivor of several congressional campaign races, and Taryn Benarroch, a veteran of four campaigns, to give you the lay of the land of campaign jobs. Taryn and Zach will share what it's really like to work in a campaign, what types of jobs are available, and how to maneuver yourself into one. Sign up here!

September 29th: Staying sane during your job search

Ellen Reeves, author of "Can I wear my nose ring to the interview?" and career advisor for change.org, will talk about keeping your sanity during your job search, no matter how many months you've been at it, and ways to occupy your time in a positive way in the meantime. Sign up here!