“I have submitted my resume and am waiting to hear back.”
“I have done everything I can.”
“I have done everything that was required of me.”
Phrases that I’ve heard hundreds, if not thousands of times, by now.
In fact, I used to subscribe to this school of thought.
As my friend and I continued our conversation, I got even more curious about how his job hunting process was going. What were the obstacles? What was working? What wasn’t working?
I realized that my passion to learn about his experience stemmed largely from my own lived experience.
The days when I’d apply for grants or other forms of funding opportunities to grow my business venture while I was in college, or even securing my first internship.
The process was relatively similar, submit all of the required documents and wait for the response.
For many years leading up to today, I continued to believe that following the rules, submitting the paperwork and waiting for the response, was the only thing I could do.
However, recently, I realized that there was more that I could do to increase my chances.
Whenever I encounter similar situations today, such as submitting XYZ document and waiting for the response (job, grant, loan, etc), I ask myself, “What else can I do to increase my chances of being seen and heard?”
Let’s face it, in most situations that is all that I’m fighting for.
An opportunity for the decision maker to see and hear me.
Can I personally connect with the decision maker via LinkedIn and leave a lasting impression?
Can I mail a handwritten card or letter to the CEO, stamping the envelope “urgent or confidential” (stamps can be bought at Staples or Walmart), so it might actually be read by the appropriate party?
I have asked my network if they know anyone at the company that they could introduce me to.
Those are just a handful of things that I’ve done recently.
AND the results are ... they've worked.
I’ve been a part of meetings that once upon a time I had no business being in ... I have created opportunities that seemed impossible once upon a time ... much of it due to my ability to keep pushing through even in the face of adversity and asking myself, “What am I not seeing? What else can I do? What haven’t I done?”
No matter the journey you might be on today, I encourage you to think outside the box.
I invite you to not settle for the traditional route.
What got you here, may not get you there.
The world is looking for unique and creative ways to solve problems.
