The Riley Guide: How to Job Search

Job Search Guidance

Great Advice and Advisors || Guides for Your Job Search || The International Job Search
Staying Organized || Advice for the Mature Job Seeker || Taxes and Your Job Search
Working a Career or Job Fair || Finding the Hidden Job Market || Managing Your Search
The Online Job Search || The Holiday Job Search || How the Big Boards Can Hurt You

We also have information on Working with Search Firms and The Internet as a Job Reference.

Great Advice and Advisors

Joyce Lain Kennedy's Careers Now

...if you don't know Joyce, where have you been? She's been writing her syndicated career column for over 30 years (it appears in more than 100 newspapers). Joyce has also written many books on careers and job search which have influenced the way thousands of us think of this process. You can review her most current column (just scroll down the page) or everything she has written in the last 90 days. Some older columns are still available at Sun Features (now part of Tribune Media). Great advice here from the great lady herself.

JobHuntersBible.com from Richard Bolles

...the newest addition to the many guides from the author of What Color Is Your Parachute? This incorporates his Net Guide (meta-list of job resource online) plus many of the self-assessment exercises from Parachute. You'll love it.

Knock 'em Dead Online

...hosted by Martin Yate, the best-selling author of the Knock 'em Dead series of job search books, this site gives you fast access to much of his great advice. Yes, you will find information on his books here, but you'll also get new articles, list of resources, and access to his blog with questions from other users and answers from the man himself.

Ask the Headhunter

...Nick Corcodilos is a headhunter and management consultant helping you with his own style of advice. Several good articles for you to read.

Jewish Federation of Greater Washington Career Center

...you'll find several good articles here, including working a career fair, evaluating yourself before a job search, and where to start when you want to change careers.

The Job Lounge

...a blog for job seekers and career changers from Susan Ireland, a professional job search coach and resume writer, and a good friend. She posts something helpful almost every weekday, and will try to answer questions that you submit.

Marty Nemko's Career and Education Ideas

You may have heard of Marty Nemko, but just in case you haven't, he is a highly regarded expert in careers. Marty is a career coach based in San Francisco who hosts his own radio show, he is co-author of "Cool Careers for Dummies", he's career advisor for Monster.com, and much more. His web site includes several articles he has written on careers, worklife, and education issues and over 200 of his "Fast Fixes," tips for improving your worklife or education. He's done so much, which is why he is so knowledgeable about what you can do to help yourself, and his website is a gold mine of free information.

The Career Activist

Mark Swartz, a Toronto-based career coach, author, and self-proclaimed Career Activist, offers you very good advice on job searching along with selected quality links to additional articles and resources. His focus is on serving his fellow Canadians, but all job seekers will appreciate his advice and find most of the links to be useful.

CareerBabe

...okay, it's kinda cute, but Fran Quittel (career expert and author of Fire!Power) has some great ideas and tips for your search. From here you can also link to other sites she offers for various audiences.

Career Victory

Tom Jackson, best selling author of "The Perfect Resume" and "Guerrilla Tactics in the Job Market" has gone online! His site features free Tips for Resume Success and a nice Resume Calculator, an interactive tool designed to help you determine which resume format will work best for you.You can also review his popular Perfect Resume Kit before buying it, but don't leave this site without looking at his Career Breakthroughs. These case studies offer solutions to perplexing job search and work problems. Select a topic from the list, review the details of the problem, and if it is something that interests you, purchase the full study for a very low fee. Each additional report you buy is even cheaper, making it worth your money to order everything that intrigues you all at once.

Career Articles by Resume to Referral

...a collection of articles on job searching, choosing a career path, negotiation, and many other job-search related topics. Resume to Referral is a resume preparation and career management firm operated by Teena Rose, CPRW, CEIP, CCM, and author.

SaiCareers.com

...operated by Nimish Thakkar, (MS, MBA, CPRW and Certified Career Management Coach), this is a site filled with interesting and helpful information for anyone who is involved in a job search, is considering a search, or is just trying to figure out how to get more out of his or her current situation. He has a couple of really great articles on Corporate Culture and Career Management.

Your-career-change-com

...this UK-based career coach offers a lot of very good advice on the job search, networking, letters and resumes, and much more.

The Dixon Report from Pam Dixon

...check her articles on current Internet career and job search issues (like resume privacy and your e-image), look at her links to job sites (particularly strong in journalism and writers sources), and get updates to her book "Job Searching Online for Dummies" (a particularly good work on the subject.).

Articles from The Strategic Business Network

This is a good collection of articles on networking and other facets of the job search from a leading resource for business networking services, expertise and opportunities.

Live Online: WashingtonJobs.com from the Washington Post

...scheduled chats with career and employment columnists and special guests, courtesy of the Washington Post. Discussions happen at different times during the week, so check regularly to see who will be around when. The times are all US Eastern standard time, but if a discussion time isn't good for you, feel free to read the transcript after the show. After the show, head into the message boards to continue the discussion with others. You can read the messages without logging in, but participation requires registration (free.).

Top of Page | Site Navigation Links

Guides for Your Job Search

Guide to Internet Job Searching 2008-2009

Woo hoo! Yes, it is finally out in print. The latest edition of our book. Still a great bargain and still a great source of information to guide you through your online job search.

CareerOneStop

"Welcome to the nation's publicly-funded resource for jobseekers and Businesses. Find jobs--from entry level to technical to professional to CEO. Identify job-ready workers with the right skills. Locate public workforce services in your area. Explore alternative career paths, compare salary data for different occupations, learn which careers are hot, get resume writing tips and job interview strategies, and much more!" This is the government's new single-point entrance to all of the online job search and employment/career services supported by the Department of Labor. From this single site, you can easily access America's Career Infonet, and America's Service Locator, and the training and education information provided by the former America's Learning Exchange. In addition, CareerOneStop also ties in other government resources and services to make this a true One Stop Center online. This entire project continues to be one of the best values for your tax dollars I have seen.

The Creative Job Search

...prepared by the Minnesota Department of Economic Security, this is a great guide to the entire job search process, starting with the initial transition and what you need to do to get focused on your search all the way through the research, interview, and final acceptance process. This includes lots of forms that you can use to help you plan your time, money, and activities (most are in PDF, so you'll need the Adobe Reader to view and print them out.) Excellent guide for all folks! You can even order a paper copy for yourself or your friends.

The Career Clinic

...no, not the Seattle employment firm, but a daily radio show talking about careers, job search, and much more. They are carried on over 40 stations around the US plus the Armed Forces Network, but even better is the fact they are providing today's broadcast over the Internet using RealPlayer (free software can be added to your computer.) Guests are as varied as the topics they cover, ranging from every day folks who love their jobs to experts like Dick Bolles and other riffraff like yours truly. Check their web site for the audios, the station list, a schedule of show topics, and links to related services to help you.

College Grad Job Hunter

Not just for college students, this is a terrific source of information on preparing and carrying out your job search.

Jobseekers Advice

...a free career advice website for job seekers. Contains all kinds of articles on job search and career advice, including articles on working with recruiters, considering additional training and education, and working abroad. Please note that the originators of this site are based in Scotland, so their language, customs, and focus may differ from what folks in the US have come to expect. On the other hand, if you are considering trying for a job overseas, this site could give you some good insight. Many of the articles are written by career and recruitment professionals and have very good information for all. They also have links to additional resources and discussion forums.

Career Publications from the Career Center at Colorado College

This is a marvelous collection of articles on job search, career exploration and planning, and much more. More experienced job seekers will learn as much from these as any undergraduates.

University of Virginia Career Services

Check out their many online documents covering interviewing, job search, and internships.

Publications from the Wisconsin Job Center

This collection of guides prepared by the job search professionals with the state of Wisconsin covers everything you really need to know about job searching and always wanted to find in an easy-to- read document. They cover Job Readiness (are you ready to search and are you ready to work), Job Search (networking, what employers look for, what if you are turned down), Resume and Applications (avoiding errors, transferable skills, resumes), and Interviewing (hidden elements, informational interviewing, telephone techniques). Many of these guides are available in Spanish, and all can be viewed online in HTML or viewed and printed in PDF format (requires Adobe's free reader.)

Top of Page | Site Navigation Links

The International Job Search

International Jobs

"Sounds exciting, doesn’t it? If only you could find a way to go abroad and, better yet, get someone else to pay for it!" This extensive career and job-search guide is focused on how to go about finding that international job, but you are forewarned. "Finding an international job is a challenging task and generally only the best succeed." Dr. Katharine S. Brooks, director of Career Services for the College of Liberal Arts at the University of Texas at Austin says this guide emphasizes "positive realism. I am not going to lead you down a rosy path implying that international jobs are plentiful and easy to find." The guide includes articles on the realities of this search, lists of resources by location, places to look for long-term and short-term opportunities, and the rules for the search (no, they are not the same everywhere). Absolutely wonderful!

GoinGlobal.com

...a guide to the international job search by professionals from those countries. There are job search guides, resource lists, and country profiles for you to review. Some content is free, but the best stuff does have a moderate fee attached. It is well worth the purchase if you truly want to try for employment outside of your native country.

Top of Page | Site Navigation Links

Staying Organized

Jobfiler.com

If you do not have access to your own computer for your online job search, then saving bookmarks and such can be difficult. That's where Jobfiler comes in. This free service allows you to store your own list of bookmarks, keep track of jobs you have applied for through different sites, and even keep an electronic copy of your resume handy to paste into necessary places. They also have numerous links to useful Internet job search and career info sites for you to use along with some job search and networking support groups.

Top of Page | Site Navigation Links

Advice for the Mature Job Seeker

How to Make Age an Asset When Job Searching, Tory Johnson, Women for Hire (About.com)

Several suggestions for emphasizing your experience, not your age.

Job Search Tips for Older Workers, Alison Doyle (About.com)

"Strategies you can implement to help expedite your job search and to find gainful, and meaningful, employment."

Over 50 and Job Hunting?, Susan Joyce (job-hunt.org)

She focuses on networking as your best way to find a new opportunity, but also offers suggestions for sourcing jobs.

Job Hunting After 35, Saul Carliner (Intercom, July/August 2002) [PDF]

Yes, I know. 35!!! Intercom is the magazine of the Society for Technical Communications, so for them 35 is old. However, the author offers several very good suggestions for your job search if you are in the "more mature" group. This is a PDF document and requires Adobe's free reader to view.

Top of Page | Site Navigation Links

Taxes and Your Job Search

Job Search Expenses May be Deductible (job-hunt.org)

Yes, believe it or not, you might be able to deduct the cost of your job search. However, as with everything else under IRS regulations, there are rules to follow and a list of qualifications you must meet in order to make the deductions. This article has been updated to reflect the 2005 tax regulations.

Top of Page | Site Navigation Links

Working a Career or Job Fair

Job Fair Success

... a series of articles on working a job fair and coming out on top in your search for a new job from CollegeGrad.com. Topics include Understanding the Different Types of Job Fairs, Your Job Fair Portfolio, The Three Types of Job Fair Interviews, and The Lasting Impression Technique. Targeted to the recent college grad, these articles include good info for job seekers at all levels and in all fields.

Make Your First Professional Contacts at the Career Fair

Recruiters: "Student Preparedness Vital for Success at Career Fairs", by Kevin Gray

Both of these articles from the Online Recruiters Directory offer simple advice on how to behave and be noticed by the recruiters at career fairs. Ignore the fact that they may be targeted to college students because all of us can benefit from the thoughts offered.

Top of Page | Site Navigation Links

Finding the Hidden Job Market

Tapping the Hidden Job Market

...nice 3-part article on how to tap the "hidden job market" including links to online resources designed to help you. The approach? Push, Pull, and Maintain. "First you reach out to potential employers (PUSH), then you make yourself visible so that employers approach you (PULL), and finally you keep your network alive so that it's there the next time you need it (MAINTAIN)." From Susan Joyce at Job-Hunt.org.

The Hidden Job Market

"The best jobs are never advertised. Find out why and what to do about it." Great advice from Jobstar.org.

A Fresh Approach to Job Search with the Help of an Old Standard: The Library, Barbara Safani (executiveagent.com)

"I love doing research on the Internet, but for certain research, you just can't beat the public library. Some of the best online research tools are fee-based, but you can gain access to these same resources in book form at your local library. Whether you need to search for recruiters, networking leads, or decision makers, the library can provide priceless (and free) access to numerous search-relevant materials." She goes on to list 14 of her favorite directories, some of which your local public library may have online for you to access for free! Others may be available online from your college or university, making that alumni association membership even more valuable to you! But she tells you what each directory is good for and how it can help you crack that hidden job market.

Top of Page | Site Navigation Links

Managing Your Search

Timeline for Job Transition from Executive Career Strategies

An outline of personal and time management strategies to help you keep focused during your job search. They outline what you should do the first week you are out of work to get yourself centered and ready to search, then stretch out into tasks for the following weeks to keep you centered, structured, and achieving results. Looks very good!

Top of Page | Site Navigation Links

The Online Job Search

The Dirty Dozen Dangerous Online Job-Search Assumptions, Susan Joyce (job-hunt.org)

..."if it's on the Internet, it must be true!" Remember when everyone thought that? (I do!) Can you trust everyone out there? Nope. Read Susan's article for some advice on what the watch out for.

Riding the Net to Your Next Job: Job Seeker Information from the International Association of Employment Web Sites

...nice, short article on how to approach an online job search, what to look for in job-related websites, and some advice on job applications from the trade association for the global online employment industry.

Top of Page | Site Navigation Links

The Holiday Job Search

Holiday Hope!, Susan Joyce (job-hunt.org)

...The period between Thanksgiving and New Year is absolutely not the time to give up on your search. In fact, it may be the absolute best time to be job searching. Susan's article will tell you why and give you tips on how to possibly make this a very happy holiday season.

Top of Page | Site Navigation Links

How the Big Boards Can Hurt You

Job-Board Journalism: Selling out the American Job Hunter (June 17, 2003)

Readers Speak Out about the Job Boards: It's a Jungle Out There! (July 22, 2003)

These 2 articles are from AskTheHeadhunter, a newsletter and job-search advice service provided by Nick Corcodilos, one of our Job Search Gurus. The first is a long essay on how the major job sites have made our job search situation worse, not better. "To summarize, employers appear to be making precious few hires from the job boards, whose success seems to be measured only by their revenues." The second is responses from readers who (mostly) agree with him and emphasize that their success in searching has been through networking, not net-surfing. Nick, a former headhunter, has been online and advising job seekers on the best ways to find new opportunities since 1995. Yes, he may seem a bit controversial at first look ("throw away your resume"), but when you really read what he is saying and think about it you see he is pointing you in the right direction.

what

job title, keywords

where

city, state, zip

jobs by

Jobs, Career Resources, & Articles from The Wall Street Journal

• Find a Job
• Post a Job
• Virtual Career Fair

RealEstateJournal -- advice on buying or renting a new home, apartment, or office.