REALITY 1: You will find less competition for high-level jobs than for middle and low-level jobs.
Hiring procedures for middle and low-level jobs tend to be more formalized, requiring resumes and application forms, because of the high competition for these jobs. As a result, networking may be less effective for these levels of employment. Competition is generally less keen for higher-level positions where hiring procedures are less formalized. It is at this level where networking may be more effective.
REALITY 2: Your networks and networking activities might include individuals in personnel offices, but don't expect them to be in control of hiring decisions.
Personnel offices primarily screen candidates for employers who are found in operating units of organizations. Knowing this, you should expand your job search efforts toward those who are more directly involved in the actual hiring process.
REALITY 3: Politics are both ubiquitous and dangerous in many organizations.
If you think you are above politics, you may quickly become one of its victims. Unfortunately, you only learn about "local politics" after you accept a position and be-gin relating to the different players in the organization. It is wise to learn about the internal politics of an organization prior to accepting a position. You can do this most effectively through your networking activities.
REALITY 4: It is best to narrow in or "rifle" your job search on particular organizations and individuals rather than broaden or "shotgun" it to many alternatives.
Your networking activities increasingly re-quire you to conduct a well organized and focused job search. While initially you may not have a clear idea of what you want to do and where you hope to do it the more you network and conduct informational interviews/ the more you should become focused on specific career goals and organizations. If you fail to focus your job search, you will most likely present a confused image to your network contacts as well as to potential employers.
REALITY 5: Employment firms and personnel agencies may not help you.
Most employment firms and personnel agencies work for employers and themselves rather than for applicants. Few have your best interests at heart. Use them only after you have investigated their effectiveness. Avoid firms that require up-front money for a promise of performance. In the end your best friend in finding a job will be you and your own well organized job search centered around networking activities.
REALITY 6: Most people can make satisfying job and career changes.
If you minimize efforts in the advertised job market and concentrate instead on planning and implementing a well organized job search tailored to the realities of the hidden job market you should be successful in making a job or career change that is most compatible with your interests/ skills, and experience.
REALITY 7: "Connections" or "pull" can be very effective in finding a job or changing careers.
Many employers welcome informal contacts with candidates who are connected to friends, relatives, and acquaintances. Such connections perform an important function within the job market: they provide basic screening of individuals by those who know the candidate. Such screening is preferable to much of the screening information acquired from the formal hiring process - letters of recommendations, interviews, and conversations with former employers. A personal contact, acquired through networking, often provides more reliable and trusted information about candidates than information received from strangers who frequently have a vested interest in accenting the positives rather than revealing the negatives of former employers.
PREPARE FOR ADVICE AND CHAOS
As you conduct your job search and networking activities, you will encounter many of these and other myths and realities about how you should relate to the job market. Several people will give you advice. While much of this advice will be useful, a great deal of it will be useless and misleading.
You should be skeptical of well-meaning individuals who most likely will reiterate the same job and career myths. You should be particularly leery of those who try to sell you their advice.
Always remember you are entering a relatively disorganized and chaotic job market which has the appearance of organization and coherence. If you approach this job market properly, you will encounter numerous and exciting job opportunities. Your task is to organize the chaos around your skills and interests. You must convince prospective employers that they will like you more than other "qualified" candidates. Networking should play a key role in organizing the job market and communicating your qualifications to employers.
APPROACHING STRANGERS
MYTH 1: I'm too shy to approach strangers through either referrals or cold calls. I'm just not assertive enough. I'm especially afraid of being rejected.
REALITY 1: You need not be overly assertive in the process of networking. There are many effective techniques that can help overcome shyness. Best of all, the process of networking is aimed at sharing information - something that does not require assertiveness nor involve stress commonly associated with shyness. Since you are not asking for a job and thus not putting others in an uncomfortable position of considering you for a job, you will encounter few rejections in the process of networking.
PLANNING AND LUCK
MYTH 1: You can plan all you want, but getting a job is really a function of good luck.
REALITY 1: Luck is more than just chance. Above all, luck in the job search is a function of being in the right place at the right time to take advantage of opportunities that come your way. Therefore, the best way to have luck come your way is to plan to be in many different places at many different times. You can do this by putting together an excellent resume and network with it in both the advertised and hidden job markets. If you are persistent in implementing your plans, luck may strike you many times!
