Paper Jobs, Digital Leads
Job hunting used to have a certain panache. You would wake up, grab a pen, buy a newspaper, and head to your favorite local diner. You’d order a donut and coffee, nod to your fellow diner patrons, then crack the newspaper wide open, folding it straight to the classifieds section. As each golden opportunity presented itself, you circle it with random precision, you head filled with the possibilities of working for countless companies. Ah, the glory days.
Now, it’s a different ballgame. Everything has changed. Most diners have been converted into cafes and that cup of joe has turned into a latte. Gone are the paper classifieds, having made room for laptops and WiFi connections. There is nothing like that morning dash for the power outlets. Once you’re powered up and online, you can pull up thousands of jobs and send your resume to thousands of resume aggregators. You can even hire people who do nothing but try to get you hired. The future is now.
Not to sound like some kind of grumpy Luddite, I just don’t understand where all this convenience is taking us. In fact, I think most people are bit skeptical and I think that explains this hunger for all things Sixties. The idea of job search circa 1963 carries with it a certain panache. The ease of access now has democratized the job search, made it far accessible, and far more competitive. You can even job posts sent to your Twitter account. I’m surprised employers don’t hire more HR people just to wed through the millions of responses to any given job.
How effective is all this convenience and possibility? If you are sending out dozens of resumes a day, and so is everyone else camping out at Starbucks, what are the odds your resume will ever be seen? Here’s a dirty little secret: most online applications are run through computerized keyword screens. If your resume doesn’t have the keywords they’re looking for, your application is deleted. It takes tremendous effort to get your resume in front of a human being.
Indeed, though the mystique of a folded paper under the arm is a powerful one, those days have come and gone. It might not be a laptop, but one way or another, most people are looking for work online. The key is using an online classified service that is worth its weight in megabytes. Personally, I just surf my online Los Angeles classifieds site, sip my latte, and roll the dice with a smile. I don’t mean to come off as smug, but there is a certain satisfaction that comes from having a site all to my Angeleno self.
If you happen to share this sunshine city with me and are looking for a new gig, try using Los Angeles classifieds online. You need an LA classifieds site that offers you gig just around the corner.
