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Kickstart Your Job Search After A Summer Break

Published: Aug 11, 2009

 Job Search       
Posted by Caroline Ceniza-Levine

Many of my clients are back from vacations and realizing that the end of summer (and the faster pace of fall) is coming. For those of you who might have taken a break from your job search to enjoy the summer, here are tips to get back into the swing of things:

Review exactly where you left your search. Do you have outstanding messages to return? Do you need to follow up on any resumes sent? Did you get a referral and forget to thank the person who connected you? Go back through your emails and sticky notes.

Reconnect with your network. Tell people you’re back from vacation and what you did. It’s a personal way to say hello, and another reason to contact that doesn’t involve asking for help.

Catch up on the news. You will need to stay current on your current events in order to have engaging meetings. So plan on several hours of reading for your first week back before you can get onto your normal reading routine.

Schedule your job search activities. Don’t leave discipline to chance. Schedule time to go to the library. Schedule networking meetings for this week. Make a to do list full of job search activities for the next few days so you restart your old search habits.

See what has changed and adjust accordingly. As you look over your search, reconnect with people, catch up on the latest, and book time to search again, don’t forget to check in with yourself. Sometimes, when we are refreshed from a vacation, we can think more clearly. Do you still want the same goals? Are you ready to push harder? Do you need to change direction? Kickstarting your search is not just about doing more work again. It is about being productive and moving towards your ultimate career goals.

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