CAREERS NOW 03-23-08

Nitty-Gritty of Finding a Job Online

DEAR JOYCE: My son, who graduated from college last June with a major in sociology, moved back home with my wife and me. My patience is wearing thin. My son really likes playing video games but says he doesn't know how to use the Internet to find a job. Do you believe that? -- K.G.

Sure. Job finding online hasn't been a priority with your son. Wipe out that excuse with a terrific new book, "Internet Your Way to a New Job: How to Really Find a Job Online" by Alison Doyle, the job search guide for About.com.

Going well beyond job boards and resume posting, Doyle's book uses uncomplicated language to reveal the nitty-gritty of using cutting-edge online job search tools to advantage. I'm not aware of another book like this guide, now available in paperback and downloadable e-book at bookstores.

This resource answers your request for technical help. Your son needs more help to get hired at a job he will invest in. It will save you money in the long view to bring a skilled career coach into this picture.

DEAR JOYCE: In planning to keep a new job search under wraps so that my boss doesn't find out, a friend raised a question. When I said I would use a generic description (Accomplished Mechanical Engineer) rather than my true name on my resume that I put online, my friend said that embedded data in a Microsoft Word resume can reveal your name and that I should remove it. Is he right and how would I go about doing that? - S.S.

Your friend has a point. Use Google to search for "The Remove Hidden Data tool for Office 2003 and Office XP" and a follow-up read-me file "Known issues for the Remove Hidden Data." The reading is tiresome but necessary if you absolutely must be sure you're cloaked in an online search.

Additionally, for more ideas to keep a tight lid on your exit move, Google "Networking Confidential," an article by Monster writer John Rossheim.

DEAR JOYCE: I send my resume to all the jobs I see posted online that I think would work for me. The very few call backs are becoming fewer each week. What do you think of my resume, which I attach? - M. I.

Sorry, I can't review your resume, other than to tell you that all-purpose resumes are obsolete. My advice is to customize each resume for the position you seek. If, for instance, a job listing specifies "working with diverse cultures and backgrounds," use phrase, if true, in your resume.

Another fundamental mistake you're making is the failure to develop a giant job lead list. The following cliché is true: Job search is a numbers game. To shape a win, you have to put more skin in the game.

In building a list of job prospects, use not only published jobs but networking sources and business directories to identify potential employers who you think may have a need for your talent. Do your best to discover the names of individuals at each company who supervise the positions you want. Knock on their doors with a snailmail cover letter and your resume - or substitute a one- or two-page resume letter, which is a creative and friendly combination of the two types of documents.

Because the overwhelming majority of people who see your resume will say no - for any number of reasons - you need a huge surplus of job leads to start with.

P.S. - Hang on to your lead list even after you're employed. A no or non-response once doesn't mean a no or non-response the next time around. In this downbeat economy, who knows when that next time will be?

DEAR JOYCE: Do you think it is useful to interview for jobs you're pretty sure you don't want - like the commute is almost to Mars or the job is with a start-up that seems financially insecure? - L.L.L.

Yes, the cost of gasoline notwithstanding. The cold, hard fact is that most people don't interview very often and their interviewing skills go missing. I recommend you use a camcorder for three sessions, with a friend firing the same questions at you each time. (You may be surprised at what comes out of your mouth or how you jiggle your leg.)

As a football coach reviews games, compare the three sessions to see which of your plays are winners. Stay in top form by accepting virtually all interviews until you nail the right offer.

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