The hidden market - Part2

Why is it better to keep it hidden?
1- Natural selection. Avoid the flood of unqualified candidates that comes with high unemployment. There are more than five job seekers per opening, according to the Labor Department's in the US.

2- Networks trust: Companies rely on their employee to provide referral of the people they trust.

3- Corporate culture. A company is more than just professionals with specific skill-sets: it is above all a team of like-minded people who collaborate at pursuing the same goal. The fit with a new comer is more likely to happen if it comes internal.

4- Building a Talent pool. Companies now understand why having a strong network can improve their business. They want to to integrate and grow deep roots in their  industry. That will not only provide them new hires but a whole networks of opportunities arisen by a live community.
"When employers do advertise, they are much more selective in where they post by utilizing smaller, free sites that are unique to a skill set or a specific market" according to Tig Gilliam, CEO of Adecco Group North America

Please share your thoughts in the comment section below.

Author - Kevin Simonnet

The hidden market - Part1

Definition
Every opportunity that is not advertise publicly (job boards, company’s employment website, recruitment agencies etc).
The hidden job market is an unfamiliar and "dark" concept. 

Breaking the assumptions
1- "The common way for hiring is through advertising": One would think obvious for a company to just advertise and wait for responses in a dominant attitude. Hence, the proportion of hires made aside would just be casual.
But, consider it simply, just as you would do with your own relationships: you don't advertise to find friends and rarely meet new people through public events. Most of the time it comes from an introduction. 
Reality is that companies sometimes even bypass the big online job boards and placement agencies to fill job openings directly.

2- "Hiring starts with an formal process": The classical hiring process (sourcing, selection, interview) is activated only after a referral plan.
In deed, why to go through the time-consuming and expensive process of posting an ad and sorting through thousands of applicants when you have an alternative at hand?
As well, 24% of the openings remains through opportunistic encounters.

3- "Referral is a national secret": You may think that networking is restricted to a handful of individuals with the right insider connections who jealously guard the information about such opportunities.

Even if this approach is a long-term process that requires:
- extraordinary efforts, 
- strategy and planning, 
- market intelligence,
- innovative skills,
- self-drive,
- resilience
and so forth
this is the best career investment you could do. It will not only provide a dream job but leads to new challenges, business resources, professional support and advice for the future.

Please share your thoughts in the comment section below.

Author - Kevin Simonnet

Networking strategy - Part14

Networking for what?

The essence of networking is to:
- articulate your networks
- by interacting with your connections, generate opportunities
- to find how you can be of service.

The principle of reciprocity.

If you want to receive from people (advise, introduction, reference etc), you first have to be willing to give. 
Others are just like you: looking for a solution at their concerns or liaising only with the people that are interesting. It has to be mutually beneficial.

Learn to be a good listener

They are extending their networks beyond their circles, because they would like to gather something that their immediate peers can not give. It's your responsibility to find out what.

Categorise your networks

1st connections:

Those people you can easily call and ask for advise, coffee, introduction, information. Take the time to list them: screen your phone directory, Facebook, not only LinkedIn.

What is important is looking at the ones that can give you a hand and maybe discover a new resource.

2nd connections:

Some people give access to the list of their contact. Have a look at whom they know and maybe ask them to introduce you. You will also learn:

- the association/group they are member of

- how influential they are

Their roles

Think about the manner they can help you as:

- promoter

- role model

- hub

- partner

- informer

Please share your thoughts in the comment section below.

Author - Kevin Simonnet

Pursue your goal - Part4

Anticipate
The best way to land your dreamed one is by figuring out the next steps and what it will take. The more you can foresee concretely what means are required and be prepared, the easier it will be.

It takes much more effort and time to extinguish a fire (which has already caused damaged), than taking actions to prevent it.

Protect your downside
Just like no one is perfect, you will make mistakes, there will also be imponderables on your way.
Working out in advance all the scenarios that could go wrong and making sure you have all those eventualities covered, will give you a hand at managing the risks.

Be prepared to reconsider
As you explore, you will discover innovative ways or ideas; but also, hit a snag! Take it as a chance for creativity: "if you lack the means, then find ideas" and sometimes, don't hesitate: take that escape hatch!

Be prepared to loose
As you pursue your own vision, take heart if it involves overcoming hurdles and containing critics.

Resist the temptation

By exploring, you'll get excited by what you discover and quickly find yourself willing to do a lot of different things.. !  but at the end, doing nothing at all.

That's why you have got to follow a firm guideline, stick to a strict planning and always keep your feet on the ground.

Please share your thoughts in the comment section below.

Author - Kevin Simonnet

Pursue your goal - Part3

Set your shinning star

Just like a sailor referrers to the pole star, you first have to determine a goal: a concrete, clear result to achieve.

This will be your reference: everytime you feel like you're loosing track, come back to it.

Establish a strategy
There you go. You know what you are aiming for. You now have to stake out the path with milestones: they are those intermediate objectives that will help you stay focused and measure, as you go, your achievement.

Each step must be a clear objective: a piece of achievement in a limited time. Breaking down your goal into smaller chunks, will make you step back to have a full sight on the big picture.

You will then be able to consider diverse tactics to reach out at the same goal; and sometimes short cuts! That will help you imagine different possibilities and open the door on change on the way.

The main point is to have a pragmatic vision of what you need to do and the concrete actions that are to take.

So, you will be less likely to feel overwhelmed.

Methodology
What I do:

1. to keep my goal(s) in mind:

listing those long term goals on a label on my mirror.

    2.  organise my work

- listing the intermediate objectives at the beginning of the week
- prioritise them in regards to my final goal
- everyday I take only 3 TASKS that I want to be achieved by the end of the day. You'll be surprised as hard it is to actually do it!

Please share your thoughts in the comment section below.

Author - Kevin Simonnet

Pursue your goal - Part2

THE PRIORITIES

Organisation and self-discipline
Now that you are free to take decisions and arrange your time, you have got to be sticking to an even more strict schedule.
No one will be there to make sure you arrive on time at your office, deliver on time your solution or meet your target; no one, but you. The hard bit is to understand that you are doing it for yourself.

I recommend:

• Time management:

- stick to working hours, whether because you are too tired to wake up after that night or because you idly take more time staying at the office.

- have regular breaks
It can vary from an individual to another, but I'm used to have a break (and a Kit Kat) every 2 hours. Not only you prevent burn out: that point where your mind doesn't work anymore; but, relaxing will help you regenerate to recover a high productivity and that will give you smaller chunks to measure your achievement.
Have a look at the Pomodoro technique

- Give yourself a time limit for every task.

                     It takes 10 minutes to recover from an interruption:
- self-distraction: you know how it is to while away the hours surfing or cruising on Facebook. Trust me, you can loose hours of your precious time without you even realizing it
- external solicitation: real emergencies are rare. So, if you receive a phone call or an email, let it be. 

• Plan your week like your days

An effective method is:
- making a ToDo list of all the tasks you have in mind (whether private or professional) and according to the milestones you want to reach
- before starting a day, list only 3 tasks you want to have to be done by the end of the day.
From there, do not think to any other tasks.

• Set short term objectives

An objective is a measurable task to achieve in a time frame. And set an incentive for it! Like offering you that last smartphone or rewarding you with a high budget to enjoy your weekend.

It is important that you take care of  you and listen to yourself.

An intensive social life
You are demanding to yourself for great efforts and concentration. 
To balance that, you need even more time to enjoy with your friends, setting your mind free, talk about the fantastic achievement you had during the week, sharing your new knowledge.

Support from friends and family is the fuel that will keep you going on.

Please share your thoughts in the comment section below.

Author - Kevin Simonnet

Pursue your goal - Part1

Don't stand by your own!
I took the decision to resign from my job facing a volunteer unemployment. I was determined to find a better job and took the sole responsibility for making my way into the jungle to this 'dream job'.

I was working from my little and cosy flat well located in the heart of Sydney and the first weeks were exciting! Sometimes, I would go at a terrasse of a caffé to work online, while taking advantage of the sun.

But, working at home and sleeping in the office is not a sustainable situation. And quickly, I was going round in circles. By being entirely dedicated to my project, I begun to loose sight of my friends.
I needed to rebalance it!

Frame your life
Because you left the typical daily grind, doesn't mean you don't have to give yourself a life frame. The only difference is that now, you are responsible for it. 
It's important to continue working, even in a less demanding area. I chose hospitality. Thereby, I could work during daytime on my project and by night in bars and restaurants.

Enhance your networks!

As well, working from home, even if it sounds great, is not a valid option. I asked my networks, who invited me to attend professional events. To and fro, according to chance encounters, I found my way with like-minded people: entrepreneurs in start-ups. Like R. Branson says: "An entrepreneur does not succed alone."

I was really lucky to discover FishBurners, a co-working space & entrepreneur community.
From there, I had an office again and most of all, the vibrant and innovative environment you need when leading on a project.

I was not by my own anymore but in the motivating company of people on "the same boat" (FishBurners is actually the name of a boat which was part of the first expedition to Australia).


The benefits
Living at your own expenses is only doable for a short while. I needed an income. Above this priority it helps you organise your time in regards to the constraints of your working hours. As well, since your thinking of your project all day, it makes a salubrious cut preventing you from over-thinking.
The extra bite I found in hospitality is socialising with a lot of people and experimenting the Sydney night life!

As well, joining a community gives you the opportunity to broaden your networks. FishBurners is a meeting point for professional events and I had the opportunity to liaise with, not only the people in the recruitment industry, but the third parties around: 
- management firms, investors, marketing agencies etc
- sometimes at a high level: CEO, CTO, VP etc
- in major companies: Google, YouTube, PwC, KPMG.

Please share your thoughts in the comment section below.

Author - Kevin Simonnet