Establishing Fundamentals

Introduction

Welcome to Establishing Fundamentals. The goal of this chapter will be to lay the foundational reasoning behind how we will approach the career and job search. We will start with the most fundamental premise: that Work Is Important. You will need Hard Work, Not Luck if you want to be successful in the job search. You will need to Set Clear Goals for what job you want and Be Selective to Find Fit. In order to establish goals and find that idea fit, you need to first Know Yourself: what you are capable of, interested in, your needs, and what you want, both now and in the future. You will need to Know The Landscape of the job market to know what roles will be a fit for you both now and in the future. You will also need to Know Your Work such that you can clearly convey your competency through the application and interview process. Finally, we will need to Keep Your Audience In Mind to make sure you are giving recruiters and interviewers the information they need to know. Understand these fundamental ideas and you will understand the reasoning behind the strategies I lay out in future chapters.

Work is Important

Work is undoubtedly one of the single most important aspects of our lives. It takes up much of our waking hours, determines how much money we make, many of the people we meet, the experiences we will have, and the things we will learn. Our whole future is inextricably tied to our careers. It is important we strive for the best career and job, as defined by ourselves, we can possibly obtain.

Hard Work, Not Luck

It would then follow that we should consider our career, and by extension our job search, seriously and deserving of our full attention and maximum effort. Too often I talk with candidates who have little structure to their job search and seem to be winging it and hoping for the best. While it might feel like luck when you find that perfect opportunity, it will be because of the hard work and countless hours you put into searching, applying, and interviewing.

Set Clear Goals

One of the most important steps to success in any endeavor is to set a clear target. You will never hit anything you don’t aim at, so you need to know what career and job you want to pursue to have a chance of landing it. Goal setting is so important I have dedicated two seperate sections, Finding The Right Career and Defining Your Ideal Opportunity, that focus exclusively on how to think about and define your ideal career and job respectively.

Be Selective to Find Fit

Hitting a well defined goal means you have to be selective and target the roles that align with what you want. Here I will lay out the five reasons it is important to be selective and find that ideal fit.

Never Settle

I strongly believe that everyone should aim to reach their full potential. Even in falling short, you will achieve much more than you would otherwise. And the same could be said for finding your ideal job. Even just knowing what your ideal job looks like will help you understand what you value and how to choose the best compromise between the options that are available to you.

Keep Your Search Efficient

There are more jobs out there than you could ever possibly apply for, so it is good to have a clear idea of where you want to focus. Having a narrow search from the beginning means you will waste less time chasing down opportunities that would not be a fit and more time on jobs you will really be excited about.

The Best Jobs are the Right Level of Challenging

The best jobs are where you strike the right balance between being competent at your work, but also challenged by new and interesting problems. You don’t want to end up in a job that is too easy and be bored, or one that is too hard and be overwhelmed. Being selective means you will have the best chance of finding the job that is the right level of challenging for you.

Being Selective is a Strong Indicator of a Good Candidate

As I mentioned earlier, finding the right job is a monumentally important life decision, so when candidates are selective and critical, this is a good indication they can recognize important problems and apply themselves accordingly. It is a fair assumption that those candidates are much more likely to bring that same methodical approach to the work they do on the job.

In addition, strong candidates need to be selective by necessity as they often are courted by many companies and have a range of options to choose from. By being selective, you signal to companies that you are someone with options!

Companies Want Employees Who Love Their Job

Not only is it in your own best interest to find a job that is a fit for what you want, but it is also in the company’s best interest to find a candidate who loves their work. Candidates who not only fit on skills and experience, but also have a strong interest in the role and the company are much more likely to perform well in their work, enjoy it, and stay at the company longer.

Note: A comment I hear a lot is that people are early in their careers and don’t feel like they can be selective. Rubbish. The more selective you are, the more likely you are to land a job and the more likely that job will align with what you want. If you think that most places won’t hire you because you don’t have enough experience, then target the places that have entry level jobs that don’t require much experience. Inside that subsection of opportunities, it is still in your best interest to go after the best one. Trust me, there is no excuse not to be selective in your search.

Know Yourself

Having an honest understanding of who you are and what you want is much easier said than done. It often takes people many years of school, internships, and other experiences to get a sense of the things they like and are good at. But no matter what stage you are at, you will need to understand yourself to be able to search for a career and job opportunity that fits you.

Your Abilities

It will be important to know both your personal strengths and weaknesses. Are you more of a people person, or are you more of a things (math, mechanics, logic) person? Are you good at taking on challenges or do you need a more supportive environment? Knowing your abilities means you can pick a job that takes advantage of your strengths and minimizes your weaknesses.

Your Interests

Understanding what interests you is important to finding your ideal job because you should find your ideal job interesting! I would argue that the main purpose of early education, besides equipping you with the basic tools for learning and thinking, is to allow you to explore the different types of work there are and figure out what you would like to pursue. If you are passionate about what you do, you will be more intrinsically motivated and enjoy your work. 

Your Needs

Understanding what you need is probably the most fundamental, while least exciting, element of a job. You need to earn enough to support yourself and your future goals. This means understanding what your needs are. Just as I have talked about goal setting before, it applies financially as well and I recommend you take the time to really map out your financial needs and goals.

Your Ambitions

Just as you are reflecting on what you are capable of, you should also think about what you want for your future. Is it important to you to make a lot of money, learn skills you will want for later stages of your career, or build relationships? You might have different goals based on the long and the short term and these might also change over time. The important thing is to know what you want for your future so you can pursue it.

Know The Landscape

Making an informed decision about the best job for you means knowing what jobs are out there and how they will change over time. You are not just choosing a job now, but starting down a path that will affect your trajectory long into the future. You want to consider the growth opportunities in different careers, industries, and types of companies. You will also have to think of the cost of entry, which could be years of school, training, or maybe long hours in entry level positions trying to prove yourself. Either way, it is important to consider all the relevant options, do your research, and make an informed decision on what is best for you.

Know Your Work

While you might be very good at your job, explaining your work in your resume, application, and through the interview process is often not something we have to do. Being able to break down and explain your work clearly takes reflection, preparation, and practice. I have dedicated an entire chapter to how to understand your work and explain it clearly through the application and interview process.

Keep Your Audience In Mind

Key to success through your job search is keeping your audience in mind. In your resume and during your interviews recruiters and interviewers will be trying to determine if you are a good fit for their role. (Typically what they are looking for is clearly stated in the job description) And the better you are as a candidate at giving them the information they need to determine fit, the more likely they will see your fit! Not to mention appreciate your ability to clearly communicate what is important. 

Conclusion

Now that you have read over the fundamental ideas behind the career search, you should understand that work is important so we should put real effort into the job search. This means doing the preparation and research necessary to optimize success. We need to understand ourselves and what we want to set clear goals and should be selective as we pursue them. We need to be able to explain our work clearly and keep our audience in mind as we build our resume and go through the interview process. If we are able to do these things, we are on our way to landing our next great opportunity!