If you are extensively hunting for a job, you ought to feel exhausted when nothing happens. The harsh reality is – it is a struggle to find a job in today’s competitive market. Staying positive and using shift perspective technique is really helpful to make things a bit easy.

Before we get started have a look at 10 reasons why you are not able to get a job yet?

There are many prospective candidates who apply everyday for a 9 to 5 job but not all of them get success. I believe we all can not adapt the same route to reach the same destination. Below tips should be worth considering if you are not getting a job even after a prolonged job hunt journey. 

1. Upskill yourself

The internet that you use for your job search, can also be used to acquire new skills related to your profession. There are different courses online which one can do for free to enhance professional skills. When you start exploring you may be surprised what can be learned while at home on your computer, that can open up new job opportunities for you. So utilize your time and energy when you are not getting a job immediately.

A simple example is to look at LinkedIn learning page

2. Look for a job through right channels

When you are not getting a job even after an extensive search start with official websites like the Department / Ministry of Labor. It will list job openings in your area along with any information on employment laws.  A lot of large businesses and government agencies post their job openings with them, so it is worth looking at.

There are Career websites like LinkedIn Indeed.com Monster.com where you must register your profile to stay active for your job hunt. These job portals also enable you to set a job alert based on the search categories, so that one can apply for jobs regularly.

Lastly do not miss to register your profile with all the employers of choice, so you stay in their database.

3. Check out Classified section in the news paper regularly

People find newspapers to be an obsolete way of finding a Job. But the fact is that a lot of local papers have an online presence these days. Check out your paper’s website to see if they post anything relevant in their classified section.  That’s where you will find the “Jobs available” listings for any relevant vacancies. I feel one should not miss doing anything that keep your hopes alive when you are demotivated by not getting a job.

4. Start something on your own

If job search is taking time it’s worth a thought to start something on your own. It could give you an additional income along will your full time job later. If you enjoy writing, you could start a blog. It’s a thing that can be started with minimum investment. I know the next question will be – What do I blog about? 

The answer is that You blog about what you know or love writing about.It could be gadgets, raising children or even something related to your profession. Like I love writing about recruitment & travel .
Click here to check my article about how to start a blog?

Some bloggers have been known to make 5 figures a month.  No I am not kidding! (Though I am not one of them. At least not yet, although I am trying.) 

5. Find options for earning money online

It’s high time that we make the most out of the internet that we have. You are anyway spending so many hours online looking for a job, isn’t it? If you have a college degree, you could even teach English to children who are non native English speakers.

Some companies, like VIP Kids, pay up to $25 an hour, and they provide lesson plans.  One can also do content writing through websites like Fiverr.com 

The good news here is once you get your feet in the door of learning, new skills are acquired and new doors can open up. 

Read my post about different options to make money online.

6. Look around for different professional opportunities

If you have children and need to have a work schedule that matches with your kids routine, consider signing up to be a substitute teacher.

I currently have a friend who does this.  She doesn’t possess a college degree either.  You can always google to know more about substitute teaching opportunities.  There are contract jobs or freelance work for different categories. Data entry jobs are a good temporary solution. Do have a look if it works for you.

7. Become a product reviewer

You can also use the internet to make some extra cash.  That never hurts, right? There are several websites that pay you for a product review. Consider working as a feedback provider on different products, Yes, they do actually pay for people to do this.

For more information go to:  https://www.usertesting.com/

Try exploring other ways to earn money using your internet.  Try searching “jobs that require the internet” or “work at home jobs online”.  One thing is for sure, the internet has opened up a whole world of job opportunities other than 9 to 5 jobs.

8. Update your resume or offer resume review

Sometimes a good resume makes you land into the job of your dreams. You have only to do a search for “resume writing” to find many sites that will help you write a great resume.

Work on your resume and do a benchmarking as per the industry required skills for a particular job. Check my post on some skills you can consider putting in your profile. Lastly, always think what more can I do to get a job? instead of being negative about not getting a job. One can also mention the newly acquired skills to make it more impressive.

9. Update your LinkedIn profile

Take advice from your friends or other professionals about how you can make your LinkedIn profile impressive.  Ask for recommendations as they really reflect about your attitude and competencies. The more the recommendations the better it is! Put a professional profile picture & updated career history. What is your LinkedIn approach for job search? Are you connecting with key professionals in your industry? Recruiters can be very helpful in your job landing provided you do it the right way.

Watch my video about how to approach a recruiter on LinkedIn?

10. Use social media to your advantage

Get seriously active on LinkedIn. No I don’t mean you start reaching out to anyone and everyone for a job but elevate your job search strategy.

Connect to more than a few individuals from your target work place. Join different groups on facebook, follow the organizations of interest on twitter to stay updated on the changes or new requirements.

11. Practice telephone and video interviews

With time things are changing. The world has gone digital. Many people are working remotely, job interviews are being done by phone and video calls. It can be more challenging to have a phone interview when you are not use to it. Also it is difficult to interpret someone’s reaction online as compared to face to face interviews.  It can be trickier to have a video interview because some of us are camera shy and we all feel awkward face the camera for interviews. One must focus on learning the ins-and-outs of phone and video job interviews other than practicing the answers. So this is another skill that is needed to ace an interview in today’s time. Do your research, use the mirror and practice making videos to prepare yourself.

Read my blog about how to prepare for Video interviews

Conclusion

Remember, during your job search that there is always a way to do things differently. If one way doesn’t work we need to shift our strategy to another. There are some suitable choices to be made during difficult times. We all are replaceable at our jobs, even if someone is the best talent in the industry. We need to keep our options open and be well aware of all the money making alternatives available in today’s market. Sometimes a prolonged job hunt teaches us that  may be it’s time to change the way we think and take an alternative route. 

Let me know in the comments if my post has changed something about your thought process related to your job search. What are the motivating factors for you during difficult times?

For more career advancement strategies, visit my official consulting website CareerVues. Through my consulting services, I can help you with great career resources to land in your dream job and achieve career happiness. To start with check out these amazing career tools in my free resources library.