As soon as you begin that new job, during your very first week of employment, even if you don't yet know exactly what you're supposed to be doing, incorporate at least the job's "description" into your resume and get it over to your favorite recruiters.
"What?! Are you crazy, Darrell? Start a new job and immediately begin looking for another? That sounds like something a typical headhunter would say!"
No, I'm not crazy. I did not say begin looking for another job. And that is not what a typical headhunter would say. Rather, it is what a progressive, career-partner headhunter would say.
No matter what position you just landed, rarely, if ever, have you been left wish-less in life. Maybe the commute is better, but not ideal; or the position is close to what you want to be doing, but not exactly right; or the money is good, but you can't help feeling you're worth more; etc. I'm not preaching dissatisfaction or suggesting you go into your new position with anything less than full enthusiasm and motivation. I'm not saying that this opportunity isn't the perfect one for you for the next 10 years! I am saying that, even if you just started a new job, the time to update your resume and wish list and get them over to your career partners is anytime something in either of those documents changes.
Here's the rationale. First: if your absolute dream job showed up tomorrow, with exactly the location you desire, the responsibilities you want, or the greater compensation you've always felt you deserve job yesterday - its important to hear about it! I'm not advocating less than total commitment to your current situation.
It costs you nothing to know the market! Smart investors stay abreast of the stock market each day, but that doesn't mean they constantly shift their portfolio.
Similarly, rather than develop a "rubber" resume, bouncing from one place to the next, choose your employment investments wisely. Know that great opportunities don't stop showing up just because you've already taken a job. Remember: you're never, ever going to take another position unless it's right for you, unless it provides something more, better, or different that you really want. Just stay informed! Be in tune with the world around you and your headhunters so you aren't oblivious to any possible ideal situations that arise.
Even if you never change jobs again, at least you are either 1) continually validated in your choice of employment by constantly hearing how much better you have it, or 2) fully informed of what is out there to possibly parlay that information into more goodies from your present employer. Just as recruiters extract information from you when asking for referrals (bird-dogging), you too can use information gleaned from them to better your lot in your current job. You either make what you have better, or you leave for better. It's a no-lose proposition! This gives rise to the best definition I've ever heard for my profession:
Of course, you don't want to spend your entire workday hearing about other jobs, especially if you're not actively looking. So, don't update your information with everyone. However, have a few chosen headhunters receive your most current information so that at least somebody is ensuring that your dream job doesn't slip by. Sincere, well-qualified career partners will only call you with opportunities you should absolutely know about.
There's another reason for getting your updated resume and wish list over to your headhunters immediately, even during the first week of a new job: if you don't do it now, you'll forget. Trust me, you forget-and you'll lose the diskette!
Once you become so sub-merged in your new position that you can't see the light of day, you'll lose all consciousness of the big, wide world out there with so many opportunities. You'll totally forget the energy, dynamism, and living-on-the-edge nature of being in the job search mode. Nothing wrong with being submerged, especially if you're happy. It provides that comfortable sense of security, stability, and predictability we all desire. However, the bad news is that you don't come up for air again until the water gets polluted-until you want, and need, to get out now (company layoff, corporate "restructuring," drowning in the job, etc.). This "emergency" career management is never the route to long-term growth and development. Sure, you might get lucky and fall into a great job. But it's far better to be poised to hear and consider all great opportunities fitting your wish list whenever they come up.
Learn to manage your career proactively, never reactively. Before you forget the fresh skills of resume preparation and design, put another one together. Also, taking into account the territory you've gained in accepting this new position, create an updated wish list-with an eye already focused on what's next in your career. Then, and only then, you can afford to submerge yourself in the duties and responsibilities of your new job. Once you know a lifeline is out there, with a trusted partner managing your breathing apparatus, you're assured of the vital connection to the world above the surface.
- In addition to updating your resume and wish list as soon as you start a new job, keep your recruiter continually keyword searchable databases, which scan the entire text of a resume for specific words used in a headhunter's search.
- You stay vigilant about managing your assets. Constant updates in the hands of your recruiter keep you aware of your current valuation and demand in the market. If a revised resume serves only to consciously document for yourself that you own your own business, like preparing a balance sheet of your assets, then it has served its purpose.
- Being updated, you are physically equipped with the necessary tool (your resume) if and when a perfect opportunity arises. Having to create one in a pinch, when you've lost the diskette, is a manic process.
