Career Advice

“Our paychecks, our moods, the health of our hearts and the size of our bellies – all of these things are determined by who we choose to interact with and how”

Never Eat Alone by Keith Ferrazzi

Professional networking is often feared and misunderstood. It can be awkward, time-consuming and – if you’re an introvert – incredibly exhausting. When you are already booked and busy with work engagements and family commitments, the last thing you want to do is have awkward contrived conversations with strangers.

However, despite how unpleasant networking is, building and nurturing meaningful relationships is vital to career growth. According to experts, the most connected people are often the most successful. Here are some of the reasons why professional networking is important to your careers success

Raise your profile

People do business with people they know and like. You might be very good at what you do but if nobody knows you, they will not seek out your expertise. Regularly attending professional and social events will help you get noticed and known. If you stay top-of-mind within your networks, you will be the first person they contact if they see or hear an opportunity that matches your expertise.

Get Career Advice & Support

Professional networking will help you rub shoulders with top-notch experienced professionals in your field. Based on their experience, these industry peers can provide valuable advice and guidance to some of the challenges you might be facing. They can also serve as your career mentors or link you to the right opportunities and resources in order to foster your career development.

Build Confidence

Networking pushes you out of your comfort zone and helps you gain invaluable communication and social skills which play a key role in boosting your self-confidence. The more you put yourself out there and network, the more confident you’ll become about making new lasting connections.

Gain Fresh Perspectives and Ideas

Ronald Burt once said that “instead of better glasses, your network gives you better eyes.” Your network can be an excellent source of new ideas and fresh perspectives. By talking to other professionals in your field, you can gain new knowledge that could help you make an informed decision, overcome a challenge or take a new direction. Giving useful ideas in return is an excellent way to build your reputation as a creative thinker.

Develop long lasting personal relationships

Networking is not about putting on a fake smile, slapping someone’s back and slipping an unwanted business card into a stranger’s palm. Professional networking involves building mutually beneficial, give and take, win-win relationships that lead to one-on-one meaningful, lasting friendships and partnerships.

Get Access to job opportunities

A single person, even someone you barely know, can change the trajectory of your career or life. You never know who might be hiring for your ideal job, or know someone who is, and the more people you have in your network, the likelier you are to be the first to know when those job opportunities pop up. Keep in mind that at least 70% of jobs are not advertised. Expanding your network can help you gain access to this hidden job market.

They say “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.”  Having a professional network of people to help guide, steer, cheer and challenge will give you a headway in your career. So don’t go it alone, have the courage to dress up, show up and make new connections!

Despite your best efforts to write, rewrite and revise your CV, you are only receiving job rejection emails and not a single job interview invitation. It’s frustrating!

Here are 5 possible reasons why your CV could be getting rejected and tips on how you can amend your CV.

Unprofessional social media presence

Recruiters will check your name across all your social media. Ensure you don’t have any bad behavior content and careless comments that will portray you in a negative light. Review your social media pages and remove any controversial conversations, political rants, illegal activities and excessive partying photos.

Silly fonts and crazy color

While it can be tempting to showcase your artistic side using multiple decorative fonts and a combination of rainbow colors, don’t. Your CV should be as easy to read as possible. Use clean, professional fonts like Times New Roman or Arial. Black text on a white background is your safest bet when it comes to colors. Remember to also keep your font size to 12 for your text to be legible.

Inaccurate contact details

You could be the most suitable candidate, but if employers can’t reach you, you’ll miss the chance to impress them. Double check your details to ensure you have not misspelt your email address or placed the wrong phone number digits. Remember to display your name, email address and telephone numbers  in a prominent place – like at the top of your CV.

No Cover Letter

While a CV describes who you are and what you’ve done, a cover letter illustrates how you will help your employer achieve his goals. A good cover letter will leave an employer wanting more and they’ll be eager to grab hold of your CV. You want to ensure your letter commands attention, focusing on your strengths and illustrating how you’re the perfect fit.

Unexplained Unemployment Gaps

Things happen. People lose jobs, others get sick and some even take leave in order to parent. If this is you, do not stretch job dates to cover your unemployment gaps, because recruiters conduct comprehensive background checks. Be truthful but keep in mind that employers are very wary of huge gaps. To address this, list any hobbies, volunteer opportunities and new skills you gained during your unemployment period.

Misleading Information

Everybody says a little lie on their CV?. Right? No, wrong. Getting a little creative in order to present yourself in a positive light is not a bad idea. However, flat out lies and misrepresentations will land you in trouble. Don’t lie about the period you worked somewhere, what your job title and role was, how much you got paid or your achievements. You’re bound to be caught in your lie once your employer conducts a background check.

Ridiculous Email Address

Madambossslayqueen@yahoo.com might be a great email address for your fun, private accounts like Tiktok, but it doesn’t look or sound good to professional recruiters. Don’t let your email address hold you back from getting your dream job. Use your full name if it’s available or something close to it that’s easy to spell and remember.

Late Application

Some recruiters stop looking at jobs after receiving a certain number of applications. In some cases, the position might be filled even before the job application deadline expires. It is therefore very important that you be among the first candidates to send your CV immediately a job is posted to ensure its among the top CVs to be reviewed.

Job rejections are extremely disheartening but don’t give up! Take a step back and identify any CV mistakes that are setting you back. Make the necessary changes and your next application will be much stronger and your chances that much greater