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Turn your new year’s resolution for getting a job into a reality

Posted at 2:36 PM, Jan 28, 2019
and last updated 2019-01-28 16:36:55-05

A lot of people set a New Year's goal of getting a new job.  Here we are at the end of January, and some of those people are realizing they're not anywhere closer to their dream job.

Jason Burton, Work Success Coach for the Department of Workforce Services says there are four things you can do to move towards that new job.

1. Avoid the binary fallacy:
• A big part of success in finding the right job is your own attitude.
• Avoid thinking in terms of pass/fail or employed/unemployed.
• Rather than fixating on the outcome of the goal, focus on the process, where every small step forward is important.
• Besides submitting applications, the process may include developing a compelling portfolio and digital footprint, polishing your brand and technique, etc.
• Even the process of finding a job can help you build skills that will benefit you when you do get the job.

2. Create an accomplishments sheet:
• Think about your greatest life and career accomplishments.
• Maintain or re-gain the best version of yourself through vividly re-living your moments of success; write them down.
• This puts you in a place where you can recognize your own strengths and contributions, and you can pull from those for great stories in interviews.

3. Work your network:
• Some surveys have shown that 85% of jobs are found through some type of networking, and three out of four open positions are never even posted publicly, so networking is essential.
• Your network is anyone and everyone that you know. Let family members, friends, neighbors and former colleagues know what kind of work you`re looking for. You`ll be surprised by the kind of connections you can make.
• Don`t forget your social networks. Utilize Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn to make connections and research companies you`re interested in. Make sure those accounts represent a person you`d want your future employer to see.

4. Join a Work Success class.
• If you feel like you`ve been pounding the pavement, talking to your network and sending out hundreds of resumes, and getting nowhere, it`s time to come into your local Workforce Services office and join a Work Success class.
• Work Success is a 2-4-week course that`s a commitment of 20-40 hours a week, but we have a success rate of over 70% helping people get jobs in that time.
• You`ll learn the latest job-search techniques, but you`ll also get the motivation and structure you need to be successful.

Find more information at jobs.utah.gov.