What can you do to be competitive when looking for a new job? Writing a quick resume late at night and applying for random jobs is NOT going to get you the job you are looking for. Is there an educational or university course being offered which could help you now or in the long term? What skills do you have to shine above and beyond other candidates. Make a portfolio of your accomplishments you have achieved in your academic or professional life. In the current economic climate employers want to know what YOU have to offer them. You need to sell yourself! And sell your success. Below are some further ideas and suggestions to find yourself a new job Learn new skills It's never too late to try to learn a foreign language, or a new piece of computer software. (Best example was a senior archaeologist of 10 years who came to me wanting to change life direction. After 6 months learning Spanish then travelling through Spain for another 6 months, The senior archaeologist is now a junior English/Spanish translator) Research: Find out where the demand is. While many industries are having trouble in this recession and laying off employees other areas are increasing employment Sell yourself : Take time writing your resume, and tailor your resume specifically to each job you are applying. Do not send out the same resume to every job advert you see. Remember if you're sending out generic resumes then you will get the same generic responses Use your social network . Don't be embarrassed about looking for work. Tell your friends and family. You never know who may be looking at hiring staff with your set of skills Use free networking sites to advertise yourself and your skills. Promote yourself via sites like LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/ Use a recruitment agency that specialises in your particular area. Get to know the recruitment consultant, and follow them up weekly. The more you appear visible, the more they will remember you Share with friends: Brainstorm ideas and share experiences with friends that are also looking for jobs. Exchange advice, strategies, and plans Act straight away: When you get a lead or hear about a job opening apply immediately. There is no need to wait. Prepare your resume and send it immediately. The longer you wait the more likely another candidate will apply ahead of you Don't let a lack of experience discourage you from applying for jobs: When tailoring your resume towards the job you are applying for, concentrate on the skills and abilities you have to match that certain job Most importantly: Don't give up - Never stop looking. While you're searching for your new job is there something else in the meantime you could be doing. Do you have skills to freelance? Maybe you can sell goods online. Keeping yourself occupied helps you to stay positive and upbeat rather than moping around the house feeling sorry for yourself

A true story… A candidate was applying for a job that he felt was probably beyond him in terms of experience and skills, however he figured he'd apply and "hope for the best". The job application asked for a resume and personally written cover letter to be submitted to the hiring manager. When the candidate went to send the resume and cover letter he decided that instead of writing the generic "To whom it may concern" on the top of his letter, he would call up the company and find out the name of the hiring manager. Thus, he began his letter with "Dear Mr. xxxx" As insignificant as this seems, the candidate ended up getting the job. Years later this young man became the right hand man to the hiring manager who had now become the CEO of the firm. When the hiring manager was asked why he had originally employed the boy he said, "He was not the strongest academically or experienced candidate, but he was the only person out of 100 candidates who had taken the time and effort to find out my name…" Although gaining employment is subject to many unpredictable factors that are far beyond your control (such as employer perceptions, competition and personal choice), there are countless factors that are controllable that you may be doing wrong. Remember, your resume only has 10 seconds to make an impact. When the hiring manager has 100 resumes on his or her desk and needs to pick the top 5, all it takes is the simplest error for your resume to be deleted. My advice is this: If you're going to spend time applying for jobs then DO IT PROPERLY. You are not going to get an interview by sending out a resume that is written or formatted incorrectly. By doing just the smallest things correctly you will find that success is just around the corner. Is your resume full of clichés? Do you use words such as "hardworking", "loyal worker" or "enthusiastic"? Do you send out the exact same resume for every job? If the answer is yes, then you need to take greater effort to differentiate your resume and make it stand out from the crowd. Include your achievements with examples. Don't just write "I am a hardworking individual" as this does not inspire. Rather, explain to the reader why you are a hardworking individual. If you're not inspired by your resume then why is a hiring manager going to be inspired? Your resume is your selling tool. Take a look at it. Are you proud of how it reads? Does it sell your strengths, skills and accomplishments? In this tough economic climate you need to go the extra length to get an interview. Find below 15 reasons why you may be missing out on getting that interview • Generic resume • Resumes that do not inspire • Clichéd resume • Your resume does not use key words • Your resume is formatted incorrectly • Your resume is not targeted • You don't use a cover letter • Your cover letter is boring/generic/clichéd • Your resume and cover letter are too embellished • Your job search is restricted to the Internet/Google/Yahoo • You are only seeking out the perfect job (Is there such a thing?) • Spelling mistakes / bad grammar • Lack of professionalism • No follow up • Unqualified / Overqualified (you need to be realistic)

When you hear the saying "a picture tells a thousand words", this means that a picture can tell a story just as easily as a large amount of text. The same is true about your professional CV. Your CV can tell the reader a lot about the type of person you are and the type of worker you will be. During one of my earliest roles as a recruiting agent, I was asked to find a shortlist of 5 candidates to fulfill a HR position. The position was an entry level role for a very well known and respected investment bank and although the client had instructed several requirements that they wanted in the right candidate (e.g. Bachelor Degree), the most important aspect was to find a candidate that would be the "right fit" for this company. We began our search for the candidate by placing a job advert in one of the online job portals. Within 3 hours we had over 150 CVs sitting in our inbox. By the end of the day we had another 400 CVs (at that stage we decided to take the job advert of the Internet). With our client urgently calling us wanting to know how soon they would receive CVs of potential candidates, we had the task of trying to sort through the huge amount of CVs and find the top 5 candidates. How to stand out from the competition First impressions count! It is estimated that a hiring manager or recruitment agent will spend no more than 15 -30 seconds reading through your CV before either deciding to continue reading or pressing delete. Unfortunately there is not one secret that will guarantee your CV will stand out from the competition, but there are many factors that will get your CV deleted. In my experience the first thing I look for in a CV is professionalism. Spelling Mistakes and bad grammar It is an unforgiveable sin to have any spelling errors on your CV . Spelling mistakes and bad grammar send out a negative signal that that the candidate is careless, does not take pride in his or her work and lacks the professionalism that the client demands. Without even reading through more of the CV I would delete this CV. Layout and Presentation It is an undisputed fact that if a hiring manager has two CVs sitting on the table, they are instinctively going to be drawn to the CV that is professionally presented and easy to read. No matter what the CVs say, the first impression is already made. If both candidates share similar skills and experiences, just take a guess at which CV the hiring manager is going to choose. When you sit down to write your CV, remember one thing. Your CV is your representation. This 2-3 page document is all you have to prove to the hiring manager that you are the right person for the job. Present a professional picture and make sure that you stand out above your competition.

In the last decade, job seeking has changed and competition for every role is more competitive than ever. The prosperous decade of the 1990s, when jobs were plentiful and money (not to mention credit) was seemingly free flowing, failed to give way to an equally prosperous 2000s. Individuals seeking employment in this market are finding it difficult to do so, mostly because jobs have disappeared, having been shipped overseas or completely phased out. (Does anyone remember the door to door salesmen selling encyclopaedia sets!) Job seekers are finding that they must be more strategic then ever in their search for employment. Preparing the job search strategy In order to succeed you need to have an understanding of what it takes to stand out in this tough job market. Those that fail to adequately prepare a job seeking strategy will likely find themselves without a job for the foreseeable future. Job seekers must learn to utilize their personal and social networks, professionalize their resume and develop great interview skills. Each of the aforementioned will greatly improve an individual's chances of landing a job. Networking Networking is a strategy that many job seekers don't focus on enough but in today's society should be the number one strategy at the top of the list. The fact is, many workers can trace their current employment to someone who was kind enough to give them a job lead, a foot in the door or point them in the right direction. Today, networking has become easier then the ever, thanks, in a large part to the growth of online networking websites. Social networking websites such as LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook are great places to meet people who share similar interests or who work in the same industry. However, even with the power and reach of social networking websites, a person may want to start their job search using the contacts they've developed in their own, personal network. Speak to your family and friends and make them aware that you are job hunting. Don't be scared to reach out to people who are in a position to help. Professional Resume Writing Having a strong resume is a vital part of the job search process. With unemployment on the rise, the competition for jobs is as fierce as ever. Human resource professionals routinely receive hundreds (sometimes thousands!) of resumes for each and every job opening. In order to even be considered for a job, an individual's resume must stand out from the pile. If it fails to impress in the first few seconds, the chances of being called in for interview is greatly reduced. Without a professionally written resume that highlights an individual's skills, experience and achievements the chances of actually getting the job becomes an impossibility and only leads to further despair and stress. If you are not having the success you desire from your existing resume consider having your resume professionally written or edited. The cost of a resume writing specialist is far less than the cost of not having a job. Interview Skills Having great interview skills is extremely important and gives you the opportunity to shine in person. Actually receiving an interview request is often the hardest part of the job search, therefore make sure you are well prepared for the job interview. Research the company and practice answering potential interview questions. The more information you have on the company the more prepared you will be to answer any tough questions that come your way. The best way to becoming a master interviewee is practice! Staying Positive In today's tough job market, job seekers should be prepared for a lengthy job search. However, being strategic about your job search can help you remain confident and upbeat during this period. Positivity is important so make sure you surround yourself with positive people. The last thing you need is negativity in your life.