I originally found this checklist through Ali Hills, who says it's difficult to figure out where and how to start your job search, and hands down, Jan Tegze Job Search Guide and newsletter will help provide perspective in what feels like a sea of mixed and inconsistent advice from recruiters and non-recruiters alike.

It's direct, simple and gives you bags of actionable advice at little to no cost...oh and it's advice from what I deem to be from a credible industry source. (Job Search Guide Checklist 2023)

https://bit.ly/45xMo3L

Definitely check out Bonnie's video to learn how, but here's what she has to say:

The jobs page on LinkedIn isn't the best way to find jobs - searching through posts is!

Posts are great because:

1. You know EXACTLY who to contact to send that networking message (or follow up with if you don't hear back).

2. You know the company is serious about the position if they are talking about the opening in a dedicated post (vs a job posting that's just scraped from job boards).

3. You know it's truly early in the process vs some jobs that are auto-reposted even though they may be close to an offer.

Watch her video here: https://bit.ly/46z5hop

Matt shares a list of 5 various posts that have helped jobseekers:

1) The best candidates he's ever interviewed did the following: https://rb.gy/cwhsf

2) How do you break into the gaming industry? https://rb.gy/6m27o

3) If you’re not getting interviews and you know you should be? https://rb.gy/mbn9v

4) Please don’t talk yourself out of applying for a role. https://rb.gy/k6702

5) He's reviewed roughly 840 million* CVs and if I had to give one bit of feedback, it would be this: https://rb.gy/xxbl8

https://bit.ly/46Bqm1k

Ye Lin's resume is a must see, and definitely one to emulate when improving your own. In her post, she shares these 3 tips:

1. Value-driven summary statement

2. Outcome-based experiences

3. Clear reframing of any prior experiences, keeping only what is relevant

https://bit.ly/3ZYSSYq

https://bit.ly/400nh8x

This hack will help you understand that, and, to see if there are parts of the job description that you indeed have experience with but haven’t included them

Ready?

The prompt I used was -

You are a resume expert. Do the following:

- Create a gist of which parts of the job description I fit and which parts of the job description I have no experience doing.

- I have added the Job Description under the header “Job Description” delimited by double backticks and my resume under the header “My Resume” delimited by double backticks.

- Respond in the following format:

Parts of the job description I fit: <bullet points with explanation>

Parts I have no experience doing: <bullet points with explanation>

Job Description:``

<paste the job description here>``

Resume:``

<download a PDF from your LinkedIn profile and paste it as is here>``

Parts of the job description I fit:

👆🏽 This final part I added “Parts of the job description I fit:” is so ChatGPT will cut the BS and come straight to the point 😅

❓ Why use the delimiters? It’s apparently best practice to do that so one doesn’t end up using a specific service as a generic ChatGPT app

Check out the full post to see the example: https://bit.ly/3Qmyihh

1. Pay attention to formatting.

Stop using those Canva templates and get rid of any pictures or icons. Not only are they unprofessional, the ATS can't read them and you are subjecting yourself to unintentional bias from the recruiter.

Instead, switch to a basic format like mine. I have a free resume template you can download to easily copy this!

2. Add keywords from the job description.

You need to make sure your resume aligns with the jobs you are applying for. You can make changes to your bullets and skills sections for different types of jobs (this is not against the rules!). Pull keywords and responsibilities from the job description and fit them into your resume based on your experience.

https://bit.ly/46MaZmI

Here’s the LinkedIn hack to find the right keywords and skills to add to your LinkedIn profile:

Go to your 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐟𝐢𝐥𝐞 𝐡𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐩𝐚𝐠𝐞.

Click on the 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐛𝐮𝐭𝐭𝐨𝐧.

Select 𝐛𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝 𝐚 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐮𝐦𝐞.

Click on 𝐛𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐟𝐢𝐥𝐞.

Put in your 𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐠𝐞𝐭 𝐣𝐨𝐛 𝐭𝐢𝐭𝐥𝐞.

LinkedIn will populate your profile in the form of a resume.

Our goal isn’t to use the profile as a resume, though. Our goal is for LinkedIn to tell us the most important keywords for that target role.

On the right-hand side, you’ll see 𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐜𝐤𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐤𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐬𝐤𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐜𝐡 the job title you used.

Below that, you’ll see 𝐋𝐢𝐧𝐤𝐞𝐝𝐈𝐧’𝐬 𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐚𝐝𝐝𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐤𝐞𝐲𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐝𝐬.

These are keywords that LinkedIn has culled from the millions of job openings and profiles of people with the same job title. They deem these the most important.

You should see 10 keyword recommendations if you have a standard, non-premium profile. If you have the premium version of LinkedIn, you can see between 15–25 depending on the role and how many keywords you already have that match the job.

Look through the list; if any skills you possess aren’t listed on your profile, ensure that you add them immediately — but don’t add any that you do not possess.

You can list up to 50 skills on your profile in the skills section. You can also add skills in the work experience section, in your headline, and in the about section.

𝐈 𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐝 𝐚𝐝𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 1-3 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐡𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐞𝐬𝐭-𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐝 𝐬𝐤𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐫𝐨𝐥𝐞 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐛𝐞𝐜𝐚𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐰𝐞𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐬 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐯𝐢𝐥𝐲 𝐢𝐧 𝐬𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐜𝐡 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐬.

If you include the top three skills required for your target role in your LinkedIn headline, you will get more profile views and interview invitations from recruiters.

https://bit.ly/48ZXBx6

How can you possibly become visible in all this noise?

Josh shares these tips:

Step 1 - type ("recruiter" OR "talent acquisition") in the search bar.

Step 2 - filter by "people"

Step 3 - filter by "country"

Step 4 - select "All filters" - scroll down and select "Computer and Network Security" under "industries". Then, go to "Talks about" and select 4-5 hashtags related to recruitment, hiring, or talent acquisition.

You just produced a list of cyber recruiters that are active on LinkedIn.

Pick 20 people.

Go to their page and click "follow" and the bell so you get notified when they post.

Every time they post something, tag the author and leave an interesting comment (add your thoughts, ask questions, or provide your perspective).

Recruiters might never see your direct message. But Josh guarantees they'll notice your comment. Do this consistently for months and you'll become a familiar face (which means having a huge advantage when you apply to their company).

While this is specific to tech careers, I'm sure you're smart enough to figure out where you need to swap in the appropriate info to make this work for your job search!

https://bit.ly/3QjmM6i

This is how Adam uses ChatGPT to help him prepare for difficult, ‘non-technical’ interview questions asked for common roles at big tech firms:

1. Go to ChatGPT, or a similar LLM.

2. Open the Job Req you’re applying for.

3. Use a prompt similar to this:

“You are interviewing me for a [insert title] job at [insert company]. The job requires [insert top 2-3 skills from the job req], [X] years of experience in [copy from job req], and [state if the job is an IC position, or people manager]. Ask me [difficulty level] interview questions, on [insert desired topic - pull this from the req]. Start by asking me only one question. Do not provide suggested answers to the questions until I ask for them.”

4. (Bonus Step) You can even feed chatGPT more information about the company you are targeting, as well as additional info about the position, or your own background.

This could mean pasting in…

- The corporate values of your target firm

- The job requisition itself

- A copy of your resume

All of this will help make the conversation more realistic and accurate.

This is a fantastic way to prep without having to depend on someone else to conduct a mock interview.

https://bit.ly/46AUxFX

1. ChatGPT

Get ChatGPT to prepare customized answers for questions you’ll likely be asked.

First, give ChatGPT the job description for the role you are interviewing for.

“I am applying for this job: [Enter in the job description].”

Then enter this prompt:

“Based on the [Job title] job description I sent to you previously, what prompts can I ask you to help better gather my most relevant experience for this job?”

ChatGPT will now provide you with a series of questions that are going to be the focus of your upcoming job interview.

Now this is where the magic happens. Tell ChatGPT you want it to answer each question using the information from your resume.

“You have supplied me with [Number] prompts. I now want you to answer each of those prompts for me. But I want you to answer them using my most relevant experience from my resume. I will now supply you with my resume. Do you understand what I want here?”

Once ChatGPT confirms, enter the next prompt:

“Below you will find my resume. I want you to use my most relevant experience from my resume to answer the [Number] prompts you provided to me earlier. Answer each question using the STAR framework.

Here is my resume: [Enter in your resume]”

*If ChatGPT stops typing answers before it finishes, just enter “Continue” and ChatGPT will finish writing out the remainder of the answers.

ChatGPT will now identify your most relevant experience for your target role and use it to answer the questions you are most likely to be asked in your job interview.

It might not be perfect, but the info will give you a solid answer script to work from.

2. Turn each requirement on the job description into a “Name a time” question

For example, if a job requirement is 'experience with project management', you could prepare for the question, 'Can you describe a time when you successfully managed a project?'

Prepare your interview answers for each potential question using the CARL or STAR framework.

*After applying for a job, save the job description in case it’s taken offline.

If this happens, request the job description from the recruiter prior to your interview.

3. Understand the hiring manager’s pain

What specific challenges or problems are highlighted in the job description?

Once identified, you can position yourself as the solution by:

a) Providing evidence of past success

Think of instances from your past work where you've successfully dealt with similar challenges. Make sure to highlight any notable achievements within these examples.

b) Presenting a future strategy

Finish your interview answers by sharing how you will apply what you learned and achieved in the past to the role you're interviewing for.

To separate yourself from the competition, consider preparing a 30/60/90 day plan to present during the interview, outlining what you intend to achieve once you're in the hot seat.

https://bit.ly/3s57xVf

https://bit.ly/3M2kRRd