How Can I Help Connections With Their Job Search?
When individuals in our network signal that they are on a job hunt, if we aren’t in a position to help with a job lead or job offer, we may not know what to do. Aside from candidates knowing about job openings, making meaningful connections inside organizations that are hiring, and understanding best practices involved with marketing their candidacy, those navigating a job search need community and inspiration. This is where you come in. Let me offer some ideas.
Comment on and amplify posts they create that are helpful with others understanding what they know. If they’ve shared an article about a professional trend with smart remarks, ask a question so they can show more of what they know. Pass their post along with remarks about what you learned from the post and how organizations would benefit from their insight. This will do wonders for their confidence, expose them to more people in a positive way, and convince the algorithm to prioritize their content.
Invite them to a professional experience relevant to their area of expertise. Host them at an event where connections can be made. Cover a registration fee of an event that may be out of reach for someone living on a tight budget. Pay an annual membership to a professional society relevant to their field. Isolation is a common problem, particularly with individuals who have been unemployed for 6+ months. You’ll be helping with their exposure, keeping them in the path of current events & trends, and contributing to their mental health.
Comment on and share posts involving other people in your network who are landing jobs. This app is overrun with discussions like “no one is hiring”, “it’s impossible to get a job”, “no one is calling me back”, “all job postings are fake”. The above language makes it worse. First, it’s not true. Second, if you’re navigating a tough search, these messages can convince someone that their efforts are hopeless. So much of what we experience in life and feel about ourselves is tied to our professional activities. Should it be that way? That’s a discussion for another day. People need hope. Opening their feed to news of other people getting jobs chips away at the above. Also, it provides a data point of the types of industries, companies, and roles where hiring is happening.
Pay them for services in their area of expertise. Is there something that they know that would help you? There are a lot of creatives looking for work right now: writers, graphic artists, producers, videographers. Many are used to gig work and have side businesses capable of managing paying customers. The project that you retain them for helps you out while providing some economic relief, a chance to keep skills fresh, and a boost to their confidence.
There are many ways to be helpful. Hopefully, this post gets your mind spinning on the unique ways you can create visibility, community, and confidence for our fellow humans in this position. Life is a team sport! Let’s win this thing.
